BATMAN BEYOND: Reunited - a TxM Story
by RosenDrache
Summary: Two months after a nasty break-up ends his five-year relationship with Dana Tan, Terry McGinnis, now a college student, runs into an old flame. Despite a tense initial reunion, the relationship begins anew. Post-"RotJ", set two years after "Once Burned". Rated M for suggestive descriptions.
1. 01: Reunion Part 1

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **This is just a thing I wrote after rewatching _Dead Man's Hand _(Season 1 episode 8) and _Once Burned _(Season 2 episode 7), featuring Melanie "Ten" Walker. Also pulled some material from some of the comics.  
Because yeah, I kinda ship her and Terry together.

Setting is post-_Return of the Joker, _two years after _Once Burned_. This was originally a One-Shot; however, I've decided to continue the story, and to that end split the original into two chapters, and kept writing from there. Obviously, TerryxMelanie.

* * *

**BATMAN BEYOND:  
Reunited - a TxM Story  
Part 1**

"How many times is this going to happen?" Terrence McGinnis (Terry to almost everyone - only the old man occasionally called him Terrence) asked the empty room as he crashed on his bed.

He kept thinking about the nasty argument that had ended his five-year relationship with childhood friend and girlfriend Dana Tan the previous summer. At the root of the argument, his frequent absences and his general evasiveness about what exactly he did for Wayne and why it took up so much of his time.

The whole business with the Joker had created additional strain on their relationship. But he had tried to make things right, to make an effort. Unfortunately it wasn't enough, and she had said as much. Now, he knew it really was over for good.

"I mean, it's not like I can tell her." He mumbled. "Gee, Dana, sorry I missed out on our date, but I'm _the goddamn Batman._"

Or could he?  
He scoffed, shaking his head. So many missed opportunities, he thought. He realized now that even after he put away the suit, Bruce Wayne had never stopped being Batman - it was a part of who he was, his identity. He remembered a conversation they had had in his early days, when Shriek had tried to discredit the old man by making him appear to be crazy.

_"The voice kept calling me 'Bruce'. But in my mind, that's not what I call myself."_

Terry had replied at the time - as a joke - that it'd figure Bruce would call himself THAT, adding a rather tongue-in-cheek quip that it was his name, now. Bruce's answer had been unequivocal, if half joking:

_"Tell that to my subconscious."_

Was he becoming the same way - starting to prioritize being Batman over his own goals, his own life?

_'Nah. No way.'_ He thought. But still...

He not only could have, but he _should_ have told Dana. It had been a mistake not to do so, and it was a mistake he had tried to correct, to no avail. He would not make that mistake again, he resolved as he drifted into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

The alarm screeched, and with a fist he pounded the "snooze" button, silencing it. Then Terry checked the clock, and saw that he had exactly one hour before his first class of the day. He had gotten on-campus housing because it was more convenient, though he still spent weekends at his mother's apartment, where she lived with his kid brother Matt. So he got out of bed, showered, dressed, and left, arriving in class just a few minutes before it was scheduled to begin.

"Mr. McGinnis." Professor Eldridge commented sarcastically when he walked into the classroom. "How unusual to see you here on time. Can I assume that you will also manage to stay awake today?"

Terry nodded absently, ignoring the muted laughter and whispered comments from his classmates, and took a seat near the back of the classroom.

Eldridge, a pedantic sixty-six-year-old modern history professor all-too-prone to pontification, hated Terry, whose frequent tardiness and tendency to nod off in class - a hazard of his night job - irritated him.

Additionally, Terry had a lot on his mind, still dwelling as he was over the events of the previous summer and his unavailing efforts to make up for his mistakes.

Dana was now living in Metropolis with her family, after her father accepted a promotion to an office there. Terry knew the man didn't like him because of his checkered past, and figured he was probably glad to be shot of him. Dana was attending university there.

He'd been to Metropolis - as Batman - a couple of times, and though he hadn't seen much of the city, hadn't liked it. He pushed that thought from his mind and focused on Eldridge's lecture. Besides, the class was pretty interesting.

After class, Terry went to grab an early lunch. He was just sitting to eat and mulling over his current situation when he heard a voice from behind him that shook him from his reverie.

"Hey, Ter! What's up?"

- "Max." He replied, stifling a yawn. "Not much - just getting some lunch. You?"

- "A little surprised you managed to stay awake through Eldridge's entire class for once." She said. Max usually sat next to Terry and periodically elbowed him awake whenever he nodded off. So far he was managing to pass largely thanks to her assistance.

"You look like you've got somethin' on your mind." Max commented when she saw his somber expression. "You thinkin' about Dana?"

Terry nodded. "You know what, Ter?" She said. "You should've told her the whole truth about your job."

Terry glanced at Max, who was the only person outside of himself, Wayne, and Commissioner Gordon who knew that Terry was Batman, after having figured out in High School that he was leading a double life thanks to a computer program she'd written. Initially, she assumed he was a Joker. Eventually, she figured out that he was Batman.

He had made her swear never to tell anyone.

- "I know." he said. "I just...you remember that story I told you about that kid Miguel; I didn't want to make her a target in that way."

- "She's only a target if she blabs about it, and she wouldn't have done that - I haven't." Max replied, and Terry had to admit she had a point.

- "I tried." He said. "I tried to talk to her, to make things right; I was going to tell her, but I guess it was too late."

- "Uh-huh." Max nodded. She was going to say more, but at that moment Chelsea Cunningham walked up, and greeted them both cheerfully.

Chelsea was Dana's best friend, and had been since before Terry knew either of them.

Terry and Chelsea were also good friends, and though Terry was willing to bet she knew about the break-up, he was relieved that she had neither mentioned it nor made any move to take advantage of it.

The daughter of wealthy parents, she was something of a wild child - a few years back, she'd been one of the first kids at school to get Spliced, during the brief period when that fad was in vogue before it became illegal.

She sat down on the table, right next to Terry, crossing her legs, and the three friends chatted for a while.

"Oh," She finally said, glancing from Max to Terry, "me and a couple of girlfriends are heading down to the J-Bar tonight. You guys wanna come?"

- "I'm game. That place really rips." Max replied. "What about you, Ter?"

- "I might have to work tonight." he said slowly. "But I'll let you know if I can make it - I'll meet you there."

- "Hope so." Chelsea said as she stood, and walked off. "Later, guys!" she hollered over her shoulder, waving at them.

- "Later, Chels!" Max hollered back, then turned to Terry, who was staring across the campus at a point some distance away. For just a moment, he could've sworn he'd just seen... but no, it couldn't be.

"Hey, Ter." Max asked when she noticed Terry's expression. "You okay?"  
She turned to see what he was looking at, and saw nothing.

- "Fine, I just thought I saw...you know what? Never mind." Terry said.

Max glanced at her watch, and jumped. "Damn, I gotta go, I'm gonna be late for my next class. See you later, 'right? Let me know if the old man lets you off the hook for tonight."

- "Sure thing." He said, privately thinking that it'd be a cold day in hell before Wayne ever let him have an evening off.

He finished his lunch, tossed his trash, and gathered up his belongings. With half an hour before his next class, headed back to his dorm.

* * *

The first thing that happened when Terry crossed the threshold of Wayne Manor late that evening was that he was nearly bowled over by a 150-pound black Great Dane mix, which greeted him with a booming bark.

"Hey, Ace." Terry said, scratching the dog behind the ear. "

Standing three feet six inches tall at the shoulder, Ace was a rescued fighting dog, and Bruce's guard dog and only real constant companion.

In the early days, Ace didn't like Terry and Terry didn't like the dog. But over time, they'd grown quite fond of one another, and the big, tough animal had saved his ass on a couple of occasions.

The entrance to the cave hung open, and Terry, Ace at his heels, climbed down the steep, narrow staircase into the gigantic cave, where he found his boss and mentor sitting in a deep, comfortable chair in front of a massive computer.

"Good evening, Terry." Bruce said in his usual gravelly, even tone. Ace moved past Terry and took up a position next to the chair, lying down. A cane leaned against the console.

- "Good evening, Mr. Wayne." Terry said, and as he neared saw that the display showed, among other things, the specifications of the Batsuit, several displays dedicated to the Gotham City Police Department's communications frequencies, and a couple of other windows, including hacked security vid feeds from a number of key targets of opportunity.

"Looks pretty quiet tonight." Terry commented.

- "Unusually so," Wayne replied, "though not surprising. Since the Joker business, Commissioner Gordon's been intensifying GCPD activities and has seriously cracked down on gang-related activity, especially the Jokerz and the T's. As organizations, those two have never been weaker."

- "That's good." Terry said, sounding relieved. Quite apart from sharing the near-universal dislike of the Jokerz, Terry knew first-hand the potential dangers of unchecked gang activity. And he had the rap sheet to prove it, expunged records or not.

- "It also means that I don't believe you'll need to go on patrol tonight." Bruce said, and Terry's jaw went slack. "If you want to, you can go home. But I want you to leave the suit here."

It was not a request - Bruce's tone was one of command.

- "Why?" Terry said firmly, sensing a challenge. If Wayne wanted him to give up the cowl, he had another thing coming.

- "Because it is still _my_ property. And because _I said so_." Wayne replied cuttingly. Then the corner of his mouth turned up as he added. "Don't worry, you'll get it back."

- "You're going to upgrade it." Terry said as the realization dawned on him, and he smiled. "What do you have in mind?"

- "You'll see." Wayne said cryptically, and turned away from him, back to his computer.

Understanding the dismissal, Terry pulled the suit from his backpack and set it carefully down on the workbench behind the counter.

- "So I guess Batman's going on administrative leave." He joked. "For how long?"

- "One week, at the most." Wayne replied. "Good night, Terry."

- "Thank you, sir. Good night." Terry replied. "See ya later, mutt." he added as he patted Ace's big, square head, and the dog barked again.

As Bruce watched the young man cross the cave and disappear up the staircase, he thought about how much things had changed since Terry had come into his life.

And for a moment, he smiled, before turning back to his computer. It was time to get to work.

* * *

As soon as his big motorbike was back on the road to Gotham, Terry called Max.

"Hey, Max." he said. "Hell must've frozen over - the old man just gave me some time off."

- "You're kidding!" Max said.

- "Nope." Terry replied. "Catch is, he made me leave my uniform at the office; said he's gonna be making some changes to it."

- "Way schway." She said. "Can't wait to see. So I guess we can expect to see you at the J-Bar tonight?"

- "Yeah, I'm on my way." Terry said. "See you there." He hung up the call, then as he slipped back into busier traffic, focused on the road.


	2. 02: Reunion Part 2

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **This is Part 2 of the original One-Shot I wrote. Continuation to follow as soon as I've completed the next part.

* * *

**BATMAN BEYOND:  
Reunited - a TxM Story  
Part 2**

How long had it been? Too long, she thought. It was only two years, but it felt like far longer. Two years since she had once and for all cut her ties to the Royal Flush Gang.

Her parents were still both in prison serving twenty-year sentences for multiple counts of grand larceny as well as charges of blackmail and attempted murder.

The last time she had seen them was when they were arrested following the Derby incident. Melanie herself had fled, but she had too been caught and arrested shortly afterwards.

She had repudiated them anyway, and they had done likewise - she didn't exist to them anymore.

Melanie Walker, who had been only sixteen at the time, had been sentenced to two years in juvenile detention, a lenient sentence because she had cooperated with the prosecution as well as due to her age. She had been paroled for good behaviour after serving six months. She had an honest job now, as an assistant chef at Deckard's Kitchen, a little diner downtown. And she had gotten a flat not far away, an inexpensive one-bedroom. She had her life, and she was on her own. Alone.

The only family she had left was her older brother Jack, whose sentence had been much reduced due to the fact he was not involved in some of the more serious charges his parents had faced. After serving a year, he too was now out on parole.

When Jack had told her he too intended to live his life outside the gang, it had been one of the happiest moments of her life. She had posted his bail, got him a job at the restaurant, and let him stay at her flat until he got back on his feet. He had finally moved out some six months earlier, and now lived in Blüdhaven working as a dealer at the upscale hotel/casino Queen of Spades.

They were still in touch.

As for herself, Melanie reflected that she had, in all her eighteen years, never lived in the same place for this long. And she was happy. Granted, she was barely scraping by - a sharp contrast with the wealth and opulence her family had been accustomed to.

But to her, the money didn't matter. The freedom did, and she was free to live her life, her way. She had gotten admitted to Gotham State University, and was attending classes part-time.

And she was happy. Almost. Only once had she ever been happier, and it was with a pang of sadness that she thought of him.

When she was a kid, the Royal Flush Gang - her family - had constantly been on the move and so she'd been the perpetual outsider - on the sidelines, watching, never getting close to anyone.

That was how she'd met Terry McGinnis outside the Juice Bar on 12th Street, downtown. Right here in Gotham City.

He'd had an argument with a girl - his girlfriend, she supposed; a pretty, dark-haired girl with asian features. She approached him, sensing a kindred spirit. They had bonded, and she had kissed him. They had met again once or twice. The last time she had a run-in with Batman when her parents faked their own abduction, she had given him a letter for Terry.

She _knew_ Terry had gotten her letter. Batman might be an asshole, but he wasn't a liar, she knew that much. But it had been almost two years, and she'd never heard from him again.

She'd thought she saw him at her parole hearing and had hoped to talk to him, but when she looked again on her way out, there was no sign of him. She concluded that she must've imagined it.

Apparently, he didn't care.

That hurt, she thought. Not just the rejection, but the fact that he hadn't even cared enough to call.

"Guess he doesn't want anything to do with me either." She muttered. The thought pained her. Not that he didn't have reason to. But she had hoped…

She shook her head and got back to work.

Soon afterwards Bill Deckard, the owner of the restaurant, poked his head around the door to the kitchen and told her. "Hey, Mel. It's pretty quiet here tonight, so why don't you head home for the night. Cal and I'll lock up."

- "Are you sure that's all right?" She asked.

- "Yeah." Cal Hobbes, the floor manager, nodded. "I can handle it from here."

- "Thanks, Cal." She kissed him on the cheek, then slipped out of the kitchen, thanking Bill and likewise bidding him goodnight.

She changed out of her uniform, slipping into black pants, ankle-high boots, and a magenta silk blouse. Over that went a worn, dark brown leather jacket.

The jacket was too broad for her slender frame, and the sleeves hung almost to her fingertips. It was a man's jacket - _his _jacket. But still she had kept it ever since accidentally leaving with it, the last time they saw each other before her first arrest. She still had it, and still wore it from time to time.

She snatched up her purse and left the restaurant.

She didn't want to go back to her flat, so she wandered around for a while, until she found herself in Vreeland Park, not ten blocks away from where she lived, the site of some of her happiest memories. She looked up at the clock tower and sighed. She had not been here in months.

She walked around the park for a while, and then slipped out and kept walking, not really going anywhere in particular. But she found that her footsteps had led her to 12th Street, and she stood in front of the Juice Bar, a noisy, popular hang for High Schoolers and college students.

She had not set foot inside in over two years.

This was where they had met.

She hesitated for a minute, but after a while, she took a deep breath, and she entered.

* * *

Being at the J-Bar again was awkward for Terry, for several reasons.

One of them was that this had been one of Dana's favorite spots, and they'd been here several times. A second one was that he was here with Chelsea, who was Dana's best friend. There was a third reason, as well. He wondered, briefly, if _she_ might be here...

He was having a good time in spite of that, dancing alternately with Max and Chelsea, but after an hour he was starting to get a headache.

He loudly announced that he was stepping off the dance floor, and Max nodded absently.

Chelsea followed closely behind him.

"What's the matter, Terry?" she said once they were in the somewhat quieter outer area. "Aren't you having fun?"

- "No, it's not that, I am. It's just..." Terry started to say. "Kind of awkward."

- "Right, you and Dana used to come here a lot." Chelsea said. He nodded, and she shrugged. "Have you heard from her?"

- "Nothing for two months or so." Terry replied. Nothing since the break-up. "You?"

- "Yeah, we talk every once in a while. Never talks about you, which I think is kind of weird, given that you guys were dating for like, five years." Chelsea said. Trying to change the subject, she pointed towards the packed counter and asked "Well, why don't you get us a drink?"

- "Sure thing." Terry said as Chelsea grabbed a table in the corner and sat down.

Terry tried to find himself a way through the crowd to the counter. There were a number of others ordering drinks, so Terry was forced to wait several minutes.

Behind him, he heard Chelsea say something quite loudly, but over the general din did not catch quite what she said, though he thought it sounded like she was calling someone's name. Possibly someone who had just walked in, but he couldn't see the entrance from where he was, and had no idea who it might be.

He dismissed it, waiting until finally he could reach the bar, and he ordered three drinks figuring that Max would want one when and if she came off the dance floor.

When he had his order, he picked up the small tray with the three drinks and turned around, picking a path through the crowd to reach the table. When he finally was able to see the table, he almost dropped the tray he was carrying.

Chelsea was seated at the table, chatting amiably with none other than Melanie Walker, whom he vaguely noticed was wearing one of his old jackets.

Since the last time he had seen her, she had grown taller, her hair longer. Her figure had filled out, no longer that of a teenage girl but a beautiful young woman. And she certainly was, he thought, beautiful.

"Oh hey, Terry!" Chelsea hailed when she saw him.

Melanie turned to look around, and their eyes met. She frowned, then turned around again as Terry approached the table and set down the drinks tray before sitting down.

"Melanie," Chelsea started to say, "this is..."

- "Terry McGinnis." Melanie interrupted icily, looking at him.

- "Melanie." Terry said. "It's been a while."

- "Oh, do you two know each other?" Chelsea asked, momentarily puzzled, before grabbing her glass.

- "We've met." Terry said as he sat down, picking up a glass. "It's a long story."

- "You'll have to tell me sometime." Chelsea said, sounding interested. "Anyway, Melanie's in one of my classes at Gotham State."

- "That so?" Terry said. Melanie nodded. "Didn't know you were taking classes."

- "Just part-time, for right now." She said. "If money stuff works out, I'm hoping to start taking classes full time next semester."

- "And what about your family?" Terry asked vaguely, and Melanie glared at him.

- "I haven't heard from them in ages," she said coldly, "except for my brother. He's working in Blüdhaven."

- "I see." Terry said slowly.

- "What about you?" Melanie asked. "Where's that girl you were with?"

- "Dana?" Terry asked. "She's...she's left. She and her family are living in Metropolis now."

- "Yeah, they broke up a couple of months ago." Chelsea said, addressing Melanie. "Dana's a real good friend of mine. She told me they got into a big fight last summer."

- "Is that so?" Melanie said, and though her expression remained stony, she seemed slightly mollified. "That's too bad."

There was an uncomfortable silence, and when Melanie glanced at the glass on the table Terry said "Go ahead, if you want it."

- "Thanks." she said as she reached for the glass in front of her and picked it up.

They continued in this vein for a while, chatting about nothing in particular. Eventually, Chelsea stood, and there was something knowing in Chelsea's glance when she looked from Melanie to Terry.  
"Well, I'm going to leave you two to catch up, then - I'm getting back on the dance floor. See ya later!"

After Chelsea had gone, Melanie set her glass down.  
"I shouldn't have come here." She said dejectedly. "Thanks for the drink."

She stood up and walked towards the door, walking fast and fighting back tears, turning away so he wouldn't see.

- "Melanie!" Terry called out. "Damn it." He muttered when she ignored him.

How often had he thought about her in the past couple of years? He remembered the times they'd shared, before he knew who she was - who her family was.

He remembered a note she had written to him, given to him - to Batman, for him. He had never read it. At the time, he was still with Dana, and had decided to prioritize that relationship. But now...

Did he really want to, as the old song went, take a chance on her? She had burned him, bad, on two occasions.  
A rational part of his mind told him not to run the risk of getting burned again. But in his heart, he knew that would not happen. There was no risk of that anymore, not after what she'd said the last time.

He made his decision, and he stood to follow her.  
Outside the J-Bar he spotted her easily, walking fast. He followed, weaving his way through the crowd, then accelerated as he reached the relatively clear sidewalk. By the time he caught up with her, they were right outside Vreeland Park - fitting, Terry thought in a back corner of his mind.

"Melanie, wait!" He said, and for a moment she faltered.

- "What?" she said, whipping around. "What do you want?"

- "I want to talk to you." He said.

- "Aren't you worried your _girlfriend_ might have a problem with that?" she spat, and Terry flinched.

- "Chelsea's not my girlfriend." He said. "She's a good friend, someone I've known a long time, but that's all."

- "Two years, Terry. _Two YEARS_!" She yelled. "Two years without a word from you. What was I supposed to think? Did you even read my letter?!"

Terry hesitated for a moment, then his shoulders sagged, and he shook his head.  
- "No." He said. "I've often wished I had, but..."

She stepped towards him, her ice-blue eyes glaring daggers at him. And then she slapped him, hard.  
- "You know what?" She said, and he saw now that she seemed to be on the verge of tears. "You're a real bastard, McGinnis." She said angrily.

- "So I've been told." Terry replied bitterly, and her expression softened. "Not that I try to be."

She wiped her eyes on the sleeve of her jacket, smearing her eyeliner.  
- "Of course, after what I did to you, I guess I'm no better, am I?" She said, turning away.

Terry wasn't sure what to say. But the more time he spent with Melanie, the more he felt like he had the first time they'd met. His heart was racing, and he was scrambling to think of some way of healing the rift between them, as much a result of his actions - or lack thereof - as hers.

- "I wouldn't say that." He said carefully. "You did burn me, twice - but I know you had your reasons."

- "Yeah," she said, "my "family". Bastards. You remember that time I crashed at your place - I told you the Jokerz were holding my family hostage?"

- "I remember." He said.

- "Well, it turns out that was a lie." She said. "They faked their abduction, fed me a line about how they'd been taken by the Jokerz. But really they just wanted to know if I would steal for them. They wanted to test my loyalty to the Gang."

Terry knew that much - he had arrived in time to hear a good part of that last conversation, while he waited to make his move. Melanie, of course, did not know that.  
But he got the sense that she needed to talk to someone about this. He could relate.

- "And what about your brother?" He asked.

- "Jack? That's his real name, by the way - Jack Walker. Can you believe that?" She said. "He was the same way, at first. But I remember when we were kids, he was always there for me. That's why after they ditched him and he got arrested, I bailed him out. I got him a job and gave him a place to stay."

"He stayed at my flat for a while after he got out of jail, too. Then about six months ago he left for Blüdhaven - I don't know if he's still in contact with them. But I'm not. I don't exist to them anyway."

"I was never their daughter - I was just an accomplice to them. Ten of the Royal Flush Gang, that's all I was." She said. "My own father almost never even used my real name. Only my mother did, sometimes."

Terry stopped cold when he heard that. He couldn't imagine it, for a family to be so callous...his fists clenched.  
"But you..." she started to say, and finally she turned to face him, and tears rimmed her eyes.  
"I'm sorry." She said. "You probably hate me, but...You saw me for who I really was. Not Ten, but Melanie. And I..."

She stopped speaking for a moment, choking back her tears. Terry took a step forward, towards her.  
Finally, she continued to speak.  
"A couple of years ago, after we first met...my mother told me something, when I told them I'd met someone." She said. "She told me that the reason I hadn't introduced you to them was that I knew you wouldn't fit in. But she said to me that one day, I would find the right one - my King, she said. The one who would provide me with all the money, all the freedom I could possibly want."

- "Well, I can't help much there." Terry quipped. "But I hope you do find someone like that. You deserve it."

For the first time she laughed, but it was a bitter, mirthless laughter.  
- "I don't care about the money. I never did - that's what she wanted for me, not what I wanted. It still isn't - What I wanted was the freedom to live my life. To make my own choices - and I have that now. But it wasn't until later that I realized that I'd already found the one."

She turned to face him, and took a step forward, and then another. Terry was still taller than her, so she looked up at him, their faces separated now by mere inches.

"It was you, Terry. From the moment we met, it was always you...Terry, I...I love you."

And she wrapped her arms around him, feeling his broad, muscular shoulders. She rose on the tips of her toes, and she kissed him slowly, and in her kiss he felt her tenderness, her passion. He held her in his arms as they kissed, an instant that seemed eternal.  
At last their lips parted, but for several moments they did not move, their arms wrapped around each other. Then she stepped back, still holding his hand in hers, and they walked together as they had had once before, watching the sun rise over the horizon.

- "Third time's the charm, do you think?" He asked, and again she laughed, but this time there was no bitterness, only joy and love. It was, Terry reflected, a wonderful sound.

- "I hope so." she said softly. She rested her head on his shoulder. "I should get home."

- "Come on," he replied, "I'll give you a lift."

Hand in hand, they left the park and walked slowly back to the bar. Terry slipped inside, and he saw no sign of either Chelsea or Max. Guessing correctly that they'd left, he returned to his bike, where she waited. He produced a spare helmet, then put his on after helping Melanie with hers. She gave him the address and he got on the bike. She got on behind him, her arms tight around his stomach as they sped off. When they arrived, she dismounted first, then him. He stowed the helmets and walked her to her door.

"Thank you, Terry." She said, and she kissed him again.

She scrounged up a scrap of paper and a pen and wrote down her phone number, then handed it to him.

- "Thanks." He said. "Good night Melanie"

- "Good night." She said from the doorway. Then she entered the building, closing the door. Through the window set in the door she watched him go, her heart lightened.

As Terry got back on his bike and rode back to the university campus, he pondered the unexpected turn the evening had taken. He had been given another chance when he found her again. This time, he was determined to never let her go.

Never again.


	3. 03: Introductions

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **This is the first new chapter in _Reunited, _which picks up immediately where Chapter 2 and the original One-Shot left off.  
Here, Melanie becomes a much greater part of Terry's life.

* * *

**BATMAN BEYOND:  
Reunited - a TxM Story  
Part 3**

The day after his reunion with Melanie, Terry suddenly awoke with a start, glanced at his alarm clock, and swore loudly when he saw the time.

2:15 PM. He'd slept through his morning classes.

"Well, that's great." He groaned. "I'll have to ask Max to catch me up."

He had a 3:00 PM class, so he got ready as quickly as he could, and ran to make his class. He barely made it, and seated himself in the only spot available, far side of the front row. Max was also in this class, so he planned to catch up with her afterwards.

"Damn, Ter." Max said when she caught up to him outside after class. "Thanks for ditching Chels and me last night."

- "Sorry," Terry said. "Didn't mean to, I just..."

- "Ran into a friend from class, according to Chelsea." Max replied. "So, who is she?"

- "Wha...what do you mean?" Terry stammered.

- "Come on, Ter - you ditch Chelsea and me last night, don't show up at all for Doc Prior's physics class - which tells me you slept in, and I know it wasn't because of your job." Max said. "And now, here you are, clearly in a better mood than you've been the past two months." Max commented. "That tells me, you met a girl."

- "Okay, yeah." Terry admitted. "I met a girl last night. Sort of - it's kind of a weird story."

- "Thought so." Max said. "So, you wanna tell me about it?"

Terry suddenly glanced over Max's shoulder, and smiled.  
- "Better yet, why don't I introduce you?" He said.

Max turned around as Terry stood, and she saw Chelsea approaching them. Next to her was a willowy blonde wearing an elegant off-the-rack black blouse and a dark red knee-length skirt, with calf-high black boots, and a heavy book bag slung over her shoulder.

Terry stepped towards the two girls, and as they drew near the stranger embraced Terry and kissed him.

_'Wow.'_ Max thought._ 'Now that is somethin' else.'_

Terry took the girl's bag, and walked them back to the table. She sat next to him, and Chelsea sat across from them.

"Melanie, I want you to meet Max Gibson, who's a really good friend of mine." He said. "Max, this is Melanie Walker."

- "So that's the one, huh?" Max said with a twinkle in her eye. "Hi, Mel. Pleasure to meet you, girl."

- "Thanks." Melanie said in reply. "Nice to meet another one of Terry's friends."

- "So, Chelsea mentioned that you girls were classmates," Max started to say, "but I'd be curious to hear how you and Terry know each other."

- "I'd love to hear that story too!" Chelsea said, especially curious - not least because of the way the two were acting now, which contrasted sharply with Melanie's rather icy reception of Terry the previous evening.

Max noticed Melanie glancing at Terry, and it was he who started to tell the tale.

- "Well, Melanie and I actually first met a few years ago." He said slowly. "Dana and I were...going through a rough patch, and we just started talking."

- "I was new in Gotham at the time. My...family would move around a lot because of their work." Melanie said. "But it was love at first sight, for me. We met up a couple of more times, after that."

- "That's so romantic." Chelsea commented. "So what happened?"

- "Well, I...my family had to leave town, unfortunately." Melanie said. "When I got back to Gotham after a while about two years ago, I reached out. But I never heard back."

Chelsea and Max both glared at Terry for a moment.  
- "Not cool, Terry. Never reached out at all - kind of a dreg thing to do." The former said.

- "Yeah." Terry said. "Though at the time, Dana and I were back together again."

- "That's no excuse, though." Max protested.

- "I know." He replied. "I meant to reach out, but I just never did."

- "Well, I supposed that explains last night." Chelsea commented, before turning to Max. "Melanie came in while Terry was getting drinks, and when he got back, she looked really pissed at him."

- "Two years, yeah, I can see that." Max agreed. Then, to Melanie, she asked "But all that time, you were still in love with him?"

- "I was angry at him, mainly." Melanie said. "But yes, I did still love him, and I still do."

- "Unrequited love." Chelsea commented with a sigh. "That's so Shakespearean."

- "Actually, no." Melanie replied. "The issue with the story I believe you're thinking of is not unrequited love; it's that it was impossible due to their respective backgrounds, and the opposition between their families." She glanced at Terry, and they both smiled as if with some shared, secret joke.

Max looked somewhat surprised, but nodded. Chelsea shrugged.  
- "True." She said. "So what happened after I went back to the dance floor? D'you two kiss and make up?"

- "Something like that." Melanie said with a smile. "After I got done yelling, anyway." The entire group laughed, even Terry.

- "Can I just ask one more question?" Chelsea spoke up. "Terry, you mentioned you guys met a few years back, right? Where did you guys meet?"

- "Actually, the J-Bar." Terry replied. "Dana and I argued because I got in late - my job, you know? So we kinda had an argument on the dance floor, and she went off to dance on her own. So I went outside, and that's how we met."

- "Oh, that is hilarious." Max laughed. "And you guys just happened to meet up again in the same place, more than two years later? That's just perfect."

- "Yes, it certainly is." Melanie answered. "We went for a walk through Vreeland Park afterwards, watched the sun rise. Terry drove me home on his bike, and that was it. For now."

Chelsea glanced at her watch, and started.  
- "Melanie, we gotta go, we're gonna be late for class!"

- "Oh. All right. Nice meeting you, Max." She said, and then she kissed Terry. "I'll see you later."

-"Sure." Terry said.

The two girls left, and once they were gone, Max looked at Terry.

- "So." Max started. "You gonna fill in the blanks for me? Because that story's got more holes in it than Swiss cheese. Or does that very pretty new girlfriend have a dirty little secret."

- "If she does," Terry replied in a low voice, "it's up to her to tell you, not me - assuming I even knew it."

- "Uh-huh. I think you do know." Max commented. "Does she know about your job? What you really do?"

- "No, I haven't told her yet." Terry admitted.

- "Well, my opinion? If you don't want to get dumped _again_...you should tell her."

"I know." He muttered. "Believe me, I know..."

Terry did not share - yet - the reason for his hesitation to tell Melanie the truth about his job. He wasn't sure how to approach that conversation.

For all the things she'd said about the Royal Flush Gang, family is family, and he was afraid of what she'd say if she knew that he was the one responsible for throwing hers in jail. But he knew he'd have to tell her, sooner or later.

"Anyway," he said, changing the subject. "What'd I miss in Prior's class this morning?"

- "You are so gonna owe me for this, Ter." Max said as she pulled out her notes.

- "I already do, Max. I already do." He said, and they both smiled.

Terry and Max spent the following hour reviewing what he had missed, before the two had to head to their next - and final - class of that day.

* * *

That evening, Terry returned to his dorm, feeling tired but content. Out of habit, he checked for messages from Wayne, but there was nothing. So Terry finished his assignments for the following day, and started on those for his classes that day - thankful once again for Max's help. Once he was done, he took out his phone, and called. She picked up on the third ring.

"Hello?" he heard.

- "Hey, Melanie."

- "Terry!" she said, sounding both surprised and glad to hear from him. "How are you?"

- "Tired." He said. "Thinking of you. Are you at work?"

- "Yeah." she replied, and he could picture her smiling.

- "Well, then I won't keep you long. Are you working tomorrow night?"

- "Yeah. But not the day after." Melanie answered. "Why?"

- "Because I was wanting to plan a proper date. I'll pick you up at your flat. What time?"

- "Seven?" She suggested, sounding eager.

- "I'll be there." Terry said. "I love you. Good night."

- "I love you too, Terry." she said. "Good night."

The next two days were something of a blur to Terry, but with Max's help and some assistance from another classmate in the couple of classes the two did not share, he was able to get all of his classwork done and turned in. Not having to work nights for a while was doing him a world of good.

He'd have to remember not to get used to it.

Finally, the day arrived, and found Terry parked outside Melanie's apartment at the appointed time. He'd been planning this evening since the previous day, and had just one stop he wanted to make before setting out. He drove the bike from the apartment complex deep into central Gotham, until they reached the small residential area in which his mother lived, and parked in front of the building.

Melanie disembarked first, then Terry, who took the two helmets and stowed them in the storage compartment under the saddle.

"Terry, where are we?" she asked, sounding somewhat puzzled.

- "Won't be long. Come on." He said, and he walked up to the door, opened it, and walked in.

"Terry!" His mother said, sounding surprised - though with good reason. Terry rarely stopped by during the week, he was usually too busy with class or his job. "This is a surprise."

He hugged his mother, and smiled.  
- "Hi, Mom." he said as they parted. "Just stopping by - there's someone I want you to meet."

- "I can see that." Mary McGinnis said in that matter-of-fact way that all mothers seem to know. She was looking past Terry at the very pretty young woman who followed him in.

- "This is Melanie. Melanie, this is my Mom."

- "Mary McGinnis." his mother said warmly. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Melanie."

- "Thank you." Melanie said.

- "So, how is it that you know Terry?" Mary asked.

- "I'm taking classes part-time at Gotham State University. We have some friends in common." Melanie lied easily, though she felt a twinge of guilt about it. So she continued to say "We actually first met a couple of years ago, but my family left Gotham because of work, and we just recently reconnected."

- "Well, that's sweet." Mary said. "He's been so down in the mouth since last summer, so I'm glad."

- "Is that Terry's _giiirlfrieeend_?" a sing-song voice suddenly said from the living room.

- "And the twip watching TV is my kid brother Matt." Terry said in a long-suffering voice.

- "Terry!" Mary scolded. "What have I told you about calling him that?"

- "Sorry, Mom." Terry said sheepishly, and Melanie could have laughed. She was a stranger, yet already she felt more at ease here than she ever had with her own family.

The warmth, the affection between the three felt almost tangible, so very different from the tense relationships she had experienced. The closest thing was the somewhat more affectionate relationship with her brother and her mother, but even that was tainted by their legacy.

- "Well, since you're here, Terry," Mary started to say, "I have to go out to help the Bertinellis for the evening - you know poor Rosie is in the hospital again. So I need you to watch Matt for me, unless you have to work?"

- "No, Mr. Wayne gave me a few days off." Terry said, and Melanie glanced at him with some surprise. "But why can't the Duquesnes watch him? he spends half his time over there anyway."

- "They're out of town this week." Mary said. Terry sighed.

- "Sorry," he said, addressing Melanie, "kind of throws a wrench in our evening - I wasn't planning on babysitting."

- "It's okay, I don't mind." Melanie said kindly.

- "Well, thank you, Melanie. Now, I'm not sure what time I'll be home, so make sure Matt goes to bed at a reasonable hour - no staying up half the night watching TV." Mary instructed.

- "Sure thing, Mom. See you when you get back." Terry answered.

She left, closing the door behind her.

- "Your mom seems nice." Melanie said as they made their way to the living room. Terry heard something odd in her tone, and guessed it had to do with Melanie's own family troubles.

- "She is." Terry agreed. "Since Dad died a couple of years ago, it's been just the three of us. Been tough, but we're managing."

- "Oh." Melanie said, unsure of what to say. The loss of his father seemed to have hurt Terry, she could tell. But they all seemed happy, and she wondered how her own family would have handled it should either of her parents have passed away.

- "Wow," Matt said, looking up from the TV for the first time, "she's pretty." Melanie blushed, and Terry laughed.

- "Well thank you, Matt." She answered with a smile, before turning back to Terry. "So, you work for Bruce Wayne."

- "Yeah." he nodded. "Mostly it's just...running errands, helping him with stuff he can't do himself anymore. It's a... pretty interesting job. I work a lot of evenings or nights though, which is kind of tough, because it does take up a lot of time."

- "I bet." she said. "I often end up working nights at Deckard's, and that can get difficult - especially if you've got classes too."

There was a silence for a moment, as Terry pondered the decision that was bothering him. Since they were on the subject of his job, he could have told her the truth about it. But still he hesitated. Finally, Matt broke in.

- "Hey, Terry! Can we go to Cheezy Dan's?" He asked.

- "Again?" Terry asked. "You always want to go there."

- "Because it's _AWESOME_!" Matt replied emphatically. "Besides, we haven't been in ages."

- "Fine, as long as you don't get yourself kidnapped again." Terry said mock-seriously. When Melanie looked inquiringly at Terry, he explained. "A couple of years back, some nut job nabbed Matt while we were over there for some reason."

- "Yeah," Matt said, "it was awesome. That guy was pretty cool - not as cool as Batman, though."

- "Matt's nuts for Batman." Terry said exasperatedly. "Especially since it was Batman who rescued him from that crazy dreg who abducted him."

- "Is that so?" Melanie said coolly. "Personally, I don't like him much - he seems like a jerk to me. What about you, Terry?"

- "I think...I think he's someone who's trying to do the right thing, in his own way." Terry said slowly, somewhat unnerved by the turn the conversation had taken.

- "Come on, let's go!" Matt said eagerly, turning off the TV. Just before the screen went dark, Terry saw what he'd been watching, and almost grinned when he recognized the square-jawed face and the lightning-bolt scar.

Terry ordered a cab, and once they arrived at Dan's Matt made a beeline for the games, while Terry led Melanie to a table and ordered some pizza for the three of them.

Dan's was something of a new experience for Melanie. Half pizza parlor, half arcade, it was filled with games that customers could play, for all ages. Terry pointed out which ones were particular favorites of his, and occasionally would recognize someone from school and introduce them to her, like his good friend Cory Cavalieri.

The food was good, though it was a challenge in and of itself to tear Matt from the games long enough to eat. But he did, scarfing down slices of pizza and talking to them.

Once they were done eating, Matt went back to his games, and Terry and Melanie stayed at the table and talked.

"So," Melanie asked, "What's it like working for the richest man in Gotham?"

- "Hard as hell." Terry said bluntly. "Mr. Wayne is not the easiest person to get along with, and he gives "strict" a whole new meaning. Honestly, I was surprised when he said I could have a few days off the other night - he's the kind of guy for whom hard work is a minimum requirement."

- "Sounds tough." She said. "Have you thought about maybe finding a different job?"

Terry shook his head.  
- "Honestly, no. Other than the time constraints, I actually enjoy the work. Besides, when I met Mr. Wayne, I was at a difficult point in my life - working for him helped me turn it around, and with the money I make I can help Mom out a little. That makes it worth it."

- "I see." she said. "Well, it's a lot like that for me - working at the Kitchen, I mean. The money's good - not a lot, but enough to get by. Plus I was able to help Jack get back on his feet."

- "Yeah, you told me about that the other night." Terry said.

- "I haven't seen my mother since our parole hearing." She said in an undertone. "I was granted parole for good behaviour. My parents were up at the same time, and they were both denied."

- "I know." He said. "I was there."

Melanie's expression brightened.  
- "I thought I'd seen you when I came in. But afterwards you were gone, and I was afraid that maybe I had imagined it."

- "When I found out that you were up for parole, I thought I had to go. But afterwards...I guess I was just afraid of what would happen, and I left before it was over."

They both sat in silence, Melanie sipping her glass of fizz while Terry just sat there, watching her.

After a moment, he stood and took her hand. "Come on, let's go try some of these games."

He led her to one of the games, and first showed her how to play, then let her try it. She'd never done something like this before, but quickly found herself enjoying it.

She had a lot of fun, more fun that she'd had in a long time. For the first time, she didn't feel like an outsider looking in. But the hour grew late, and she started to tire.

"Okay, time to get home, otherwise Mom is going to flay me alive for keeping Matt out this late." Terry said jokingly.

He waited for Matt to finish the game he was playing.  
"Time to go, twip." he said, ruffling his kid brother's hair with one hand.

- "Hey, stop that!" Matt protested, and lunged at his brother, who kept him at arm's length easily.

- "Come on, we gotta catch a cab home."

- "Aaw, man! Do we have to?" Matt complained.

- "We do if you don't want to get in trouble." Terry said, and Matt, all of ten years old, looked for a moment like he was going to argue. But he simply shrugged.  
- "Okay." He said in a defeated tone.

Matt ran a short distance ahead, while Terry and Melanie walked out hand in hand.

"I had fun tonight." she said as they entered the cab.

- "Me too." Terry said. "I'm glad you enjoyed it." He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and she shifted in the seat to sit closer to him.

- "You guys aren't gonna start kissing in here, are you?" Matt said, sounding revolted. Terry didn't reply, just grinned, and Melanie smiled too.

When the three of them arrived back at the McGinnis residence, Matt immediately plopped down in front of the TV, watching his shows until Terry turned it off and sent him to bed.

Afterwards, Terry went to his room, and Melanie followed.

"Place hasn't changed." She commented, looking around.

- "No, it hasn't - much." Terry agreed. They leaned against the windowsill, his arm around her.

- "Your mom's nice." she said wistfully. "And Matt's just sweet."

- "He has his moments, when he's not bugging me." Terry replied, and Melanie laughed. "What?"

- "I guess that's what brothers do." she said. "When we were kids, Jack and I were the same. Before..." She let the thought trail off.

"Sometimes, I wonder what things would be like if my family hadn't been what it was. But then I remember that if they hadn't, I never would've met you."

- "That would've been a shame." Terry said, pulling her closer to him. She rested her head on his shoulder, enjoying the closeness, his warmth.

They stayed there for a while, looking out at the city below them. After a moment she turned towards him, and with one hand she caressed his face, her eyes fixed on his. Neither of them spoke, wanting to prolong this moment for as long as possible.

But finally, she folded her arms around his neck and, rising on the tips of her toes, pulled him to her as their lips met. She kissed him deeply, and she felt his arms wrap around the small of her back as he drew her closer.

The two stepped slowly back towards the bed, and Melanie shoved Terry gently back so that he fell backwards onto it, and she climbed on top of him.

Breathing heavily, she released him long enough to unbutton her blouse, and finding his wrist, guided his hand to her breast and let it rest there, her heart racing.

She slipped one hand under his shirt and felt the taut, hard muscles of his abdomen, and then slowly slipped higher until she felt under her fingertips the frantic beating of his own heart.

His hand slid up from her breast towards her neck with a gentleness that surprised her, and she sighed softly when she felt his fingers tracing her cheek, then slide slowly down her shoulder as his other hand did the same, gradually pulling her blouse off and sliding it with agonizing slowness down her arms. She pulled her hand away from his chest to completely remove the garment, then tossed it aside.

Still straddling him, she slowly took hold of the hem of his shirt and gradually pulled it upwards, over his raised arms, and threw that aside as well. The rest of their clothing soon followed.

Then she hovered over him for what seemed like an interminable instant, before lowering herself to him. They kissed again, urgently and hungrily. In that instant nothing else mattered but the two of them.

His arms enfolded her, drawing her close, their bodies pressed together. Passion and longing rose in her like a torrent, and she allowed herself to be gloriously, wonderfully swept away.


	4. 04: Secrets

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **Picking up immediately after the previous chapter, here's 4

* * *

**BATMAN BEYOND:  
Reunited - a TxM Story  
Part 4**

The shrill beeping of an alarm clock woke Terry McGinnis, and he pounded the snooze button to silence it.

The first thing he noticed when he dragged himself out of bed was that he was naked, so he hastily pulled on some shorts and a t-shirt. As he dressed, he heard indistinct conversation from outside. He also smelled something cooking. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he walked to the door, opened it, and stepped out.

"What smells so good?" He asked.

- "Good morning, sleepyhead." he heard the reply. "I'm making breakfast."

His mother was seated at the kitchen counter, while he saw Matt playing in the corner. Dressed and wearing his mother's apron, Melanie was in the kitchen.

He smiled.  
- "Good morning, Melanie." He said. Then, turning to his mother, he said "Morning, Mom. What time'd you get in?"

- "Later than I would've liked. You were both asleep by the time I got home." She said, and there was a sly twinkle in her eye that told Terry she knew, or at least guessed, how their night had gone. "I'm actually surprised you two spent the night here - I thought you would have returned to the dorms."

- "I guess we were just tired," Terry said vaguely, "We'll have to head back after breakfast."

- "I'll need you to drop me off at my flat so I can pick up a few things." Melanie said with a nod. "Now come on, it's ready."

The four of them sat down at the table and began to eat.

- "This is really good." Terry commented as they were eating.

- "Don't talk with your mouth full." Mary admonished. "But yes, Melanie, you're quite a cook."

- "Thank you," she said gratefully. "I've been working at Deckard's Kitchen since I got back to Gotham, and I tried to pick up a few things."

- "I know that place." Mary commented. "Kind of a risky neighborhood, isn't it?"

- "A little." Melanie admitted. "But I don't mind. It's good work, and not far from where I live."

The conversation continued. Mary McGinnis seemed to like Melanie, although the latter remained vague about her own background. On the other hand, Melanie learned a great deal about the McGinnis family, and the more she did, the more comfortable she felt with them.  
Maybe, one day, comfortable enough to share with them her real story.

But not yet.

While Terry got dressed, Mary McGinnis helped the young woman clean up in the kitchen, before she had to leave for work, taking Matt with her to drop him off at school.

Melanie sat on the living room couch, crossing her long legs, and sighed. Finally Terry emerged, freshly showered and dressed, and she stood and kissed him.

- "Thank you." she said.

- "For what?" Terry asked.

- "For all of this. For letting me meet your family. For the most amazing night of my life." She said. "Time to go, though."

- "Yeah," Terry answered. "Don't want to be late for class."

They took his bike and rode back to her flat, where he dropped her off.

- "I'll see you later." Melanie said, kissing Terry.

- "We'll have to do this again sometime soon." he said, grinning.

- "I certainly hope so." She answered huskily, and winked. Then she turned and headed back inside, and he turned his bike around and headed back to his dorm. He needed to pick up his books and head to class, or he'd be late - again.

Several days passed. Terry called Melanie every night, and saw her at least at lunch most days, but that evening was the first opportunity they'd had to get together since that first evening.

However, shortly before he was due to pick her up, Terry received a phone call he'd been dreading since their relationship began. From Wayne, summoning him to the cave.

"This is Terry." He said.

- "Vacation's over." Wayne said curtly, "I need you to get down here."

- "Does it have to be now?" Terry asked. Wayne did not reply. "Fine. I'll be over as soon as I can."

He hung up the call. Then he dialed another number.

- "Terry?" Melanie asked when she picked up.

- "Yeah." He said, and from his tone she guessed that something was wrong.

- "What's the matter?" She asked, sounding worried.

- "Something's come up," he said, "I'm sorry, but...I'm afraid I won't make it tonight."

- "Is it your job?" She asked, and she sounded so disappointed that it felt like a knife to the gut.

- "It is." he said. "Mr. Wayne needs my help. I promise, I'll make it up to you. I love you."

- "I love you too, Terry." She said, crestfallen, and hung up.

- "Damn it." Terry swore under his breath. _'Here we go again.'_ He thought.

He pocketed the phone, started his bike, and roared off.

The gates of the Wayne property opened noiselessly as he rode up, and he started down the drive towards the house. The graveled driveway was a quarter-mile long, but the powerful cycle covered the distance in seconds, coming to a halt just in front of the house.

He stowed his helmet, grabbed his empty backpack, and entered the house, closing the doors behind him.

"You're late." Wayne's deep voice echoed as he walked down the stairs into the cave. The old man was standing in front of the long workbench located behind the gigantic computer, working, Terry saw, on the suit.

- "Excuse me for having a life." Terry snapped, "I got here as fast as I could."

Wayne looked up, a questioning expression on his aged face.  
"Sorry, I didn't mean to snap like that. It's just that Melanie and I had plans for this evening." Terry added.

- "Your girlfriend?" Wayne inquired with an odd look on his face, and Terry nodded. "That wouldn't happen to be Melanie Walker, by chance?"

- "Yes, it's Melanie Walker." Terry replied. Then, looking at the expression on the old man's face, he added. "I assume you don't approve."

- "Of your pursuing a relationship with a convicted thief? Of course not." Wayne replied.

- "That was then, not now." Terry protested. "She's done her time, she's out on parole for good behaviour, and she's straight now. She was a thief because her parents were thieves, but she's moved on, and she wouldn't go back to stealing again. I know it."

- "She did, once." Wayne countered.

- "Like I need you to remind me of that. She thought her family was in danger, and she was desperate. But you haven't heard the way she talks about them now." Terry retorted. "And remember that the last time we went up against the Royal Flush Gang, she wasn't with them. "I don't exist to them" - her words."

Wayne did not reply. Terry had a point, but that in itself was not conclusive.

"She's turned her life around." Terry stated firmly. "She would never go back to them again."

- "If you say so." Wayne said, his tone clearly indicating his skepticism. Knowing he would never be able to convince Wayne of Melanie's redemption, Terry changed the subject.

- "So, the suit's done?" he asked, and the old man nodded.

- "Basically rebuilt from the ground up, improvements across the board. I want to run a few quick diagnostic checks, and then do a test-run here before you go out."

Terry gave the suit an appraising look. Externally, it didn't seem all that different at first glance, but he noticed the fabric seemed thicker, and even the outside looked reinforced.

- "Looks heavier." He commented.

- "It is. I reinforced it and increased the insulation." Wayne confirmed. "You'll have more protection against temperature extremes, radiation, fire. Also better water-proofing, and better ballistic protection as well - not perfect, but better."

- "What about electrical or electromagnetic attacks?" Terry asked. He'd lost count of the sheer number of times he'd been electrocuted during his time as Batman. The suit's insulation had helped - what should be fatal discharges typically just hurt like hell.

The corner of Wayne's mouth twitched upwards.  
- "Good, you're paying attention." He said. "The suit's been completely hardened against electromagnetic fields or discharges. I've enhanced the thrusters and updated the servos, so you'll actually be faster than before despite the added weight, and I also boosted the suit's flight systems."

- "Schway." Terry commented. "Anything else I should know about?"

Before Wayne could answer, the computer beeped, and a new alert window opened up. Terry looked up, and Bruce glanced at the screen over his shoulder.

- "Suit up" He said simply. "Time to get to work."

- "On my way." Terry replied, and within minutes he was suited up. He boarded the car, and took off with his usual high speed.

"It's Ghoul." Terry said in a low voice as he neared the scene of the attack, Gotham's largest cred bank. He'd left the car, cloaked, some distance away and made his approach on foot - sort of.

The crime was almost pedestrian, by Gotham's usual standards. However, according to the GCPD reports Bruce had intercepted and relayed to the car, police efforts had been hindered by the responding officers becoming completely incapacitated

Ghoul was strictly small-time, a two-bit crook who ran with the Jokerz. He'd been in the crew that rallied to the Joker (a.k.a. Tim Drake) when he had resurfaced previously. The Dee Dee twins and Chucko had been arrested, but Ghoul and the Splicer Woof had evaded capture.

The Joker himself destroyed, Drake had been released, with the official report explaining his presence at the scene by describing him as a hostage who had been forced to work for the Joker against his will - which was only a slight distortion of the true events. But still, Terry thought, something was up.

"Something's up. This is way too big for a small fry like Ghoul. He's got accomplices, though. Woof's with him - should've brought the mutt along...and...no slaggin' way. Terminal."

- "Who?" Wayne asked.

- "Terminal - he ran a crew of Jokerz a couple of years back." Terry explained. "I know the guy; Carter Wilson, went to Hill High. Second-best student in our class, behind Max. Kind of a jerk."

- "Zoom in closer." Wayne asked, as he noticed something. "Something seems strange."

- "They're wearing...gas masks." Terry commented, puzzled. "And it looks like they've got some kind of aerosol dispenser on them. No other weapons visible. I'm going in."

- "WAIT!" Wayne ordered. "There are GCPD officers in there, as well as bank employees. Zoom in on them, show me what they're doing."

- "They're not doing anything. Just sitting or lying there." Terry replied.

- "Just do it." Wayne ordered, and Terry complied immediately, zooming in on the nearest one, and nearly started at the twisted features, the expression on the cop's face.

Bruce saw it too, and recognized what he was seeing.

"Scarecrow..." He mumbled.

- "One of yours?" Terry asked.

- "Doctor Jonathan Crane. Used to be psychology professor at Gotham University." Bruce explained. "His specialty was abnormal psychology, especially phobias. He developed a nerve toxin he weaponized and used in criminal activities."

- "Sounds like Spellbinder." Terry commented.

- "Similar background, different methods." Bruce agreed. "Crane used a psychotropic hallucinogen that was delivered in aerosol form. It created illusions based on a person's fears, inducing a paralyzing terror in most of its victims. Your friends must have found a stockpile of it somehow."

- "Okay, note to self: Hold your breath." Terry quipped. "Or not."

Then he engaged the suit's rebreather, an integrated, closed-loop breathing apparatus built into the suit, allowing him to breathe underwater for a limited period of time.

Bruce had slightly upgraded the device, making it more compact, and it was light and flexible enough that it would work just as well to isolate Terry from the influence of the nerve toxin.

Bruce was impressed - the kid was learning. His tendency to talk reminded him of Dick or Tim, but he was learning what it meant to be Batman.

- "NOW you can go in." Bruce said.

- "Way ahead of you, boss." Terry replied. He was already on the move.

* * *

Ghoul laughed behind his gas mask. He'd been running with the Jokerz for years, and a while back had hooked up with THE Joker, when he turned up in Gotham again. But when the Clown Prince of Crime was taken down by the Bat, he and Woof went on the run, and they'd been on the run since.

Then he hooked up with Terminal, and they scored this gas stuff. It was better than the Joker's toxin, better than slappers - better than anything. With this stuff, they had a chance to really make it big - bigger even than the goddamn Joker.

Suddenly, one of the windows high above them burst, and in the cloud of broken glass that dropped, a black shadow fell.

"Terminal!" He yelled. "It's the Batman!" And even as he did, he raised the aerosol dispenser on his wrist and pulled the trigger, surrounding the Batman in a cloud of toxic gas.

"You'll have to do better than that." Batman commented as he leaped into action, a flying tackle that bowled Ghoul over. The bag Ghoul had been carrying, which was full of their haul, fell to the ground and spilled.

Ghoul stood. Somehow, the Bat had resisted the toxin, and he now saw he too was wearing some kind of gas mask. He drew a gun from where he'd tucked it into his waistband and aimed at Batman.

- "Terry!" Wayne said. "Engage the electromagnetic shields!"

Terry raised one arm and activated one of the suit's new features - an electromagnetic shield, which deployed just as Ghoul fired, blocking the first shot.

_'This is so way beyond awesome' _Terry thought.

Then he deactivated the shield and he was on the move again, dodging additional shots from his opponent - and doing so more easily than he would've thought possible. Compared to the old suit, he was faster, more agile, both on the ground and in the air. And he was stronger, too. Though how much stronger, he had yet to test out.

Ghoul reloaded his weapon and raised it once more. There was a flash of metal, and Ghoul screamed in pain as the point of a batarang lodged itself into the back of his hand.

He dropped the weapon, and moments later Batman fired a pair of bolas that wrapped themselves tight around his legs and torso, binding his arms and legs, and he hit the ground. As he fell, the black batarang tore itself loose, and he screamed again. Then his head slammed into something hard, and everything went black.

Terry heard a snarl, and Woof bowled him over as he tackled him, biting down on his forearm. The thickly insulated suit protected his arm, and he retaliated with a kick that sent the splicer flying until he slammed into a back wall with a yelp.

Woof stood shakily, and before he could attack again Batman countered, immobilizing him with a bola that wrapped itself around his legs, dropping him to the floor. Then the Bat lunged, and before Woof could move he had wrenched his his arms around his back and cuffed him.

"Two down." Terry muttered. Then Terminal slammed him in the back of the head with some kind of club, and he toppled forward, slightly disoriented.

He recovered near-instantly, and when Terminal struck again he caught the club, wrenched it from his hands, and countered with a lightning-fast kick to the stomach.

To his credit, Terminal was back on his feet quickly, and drew a gun. Terry fished a flash-bang pellet from the utility belt and threw it, turning away as he did so. The pellet exploded with a harsh blast and a blinding flash, and Terminal yelled in pain, his hands reflexively flying to his face to shield his eyes.

Too late. For the next five seconds, he was blind. The Bat was on him immediately, and within seconds Terminal was down again after taking a knockout punch to the solar plexus.

Terry crushed the aerosol dispenser's trigger mechanism, careful not to damage the feed line or the tank that held the toxin. That done, he handcuffed him too, and then relieved the unconscious Ghoul of his own dispenser. He disappeared just as a GCPD SWAT team, wearing gas masks and carrying heavy weapons, stormed the bank.

"All in a night's work." He commented, then slipped silently away.

* * *

"Emergency services are still busy handling the aftermath of an attempted heist at the First Central Bank of Gotham earlier this evening." The news anchor said in its usual falsely cheery voice. "Three attackers assaulted the bank using some kind of nerve gas that incapacitated bank employees as well as initial GCPD officers who responded to the alert.

The culprits are now in custody, and early reports seem to indicate that Gotham's very own Dark Knight may have been involved. We now go live to Commissioner Gordon, who is at the scene."

The TV went blank.

Melanie leaned back on her bed and sighed wistfully. She had so been looking forward to this evening, and now here she was, alone in her dingy one-bedroom flat while Terry was off doing who-knew-what working for Wayne, probably at that gigantic mansion outside of the city in which the old man lived.

She looked out her window, but all she saw were the steel-and-concrete skyscrapers of Gotham. She had been paid that day and had splurged on a new dress especially for the evening, which hung ready. For nothing, now.

She stood, and carefully hung the dress in her closet. As she did, her eye fell on a garment buried in the back of the closet. A form-fitting, one-piece bodysuit, colored entirely black on the left side, white on the right, from head to toe. A small black "10" on the right breast. A matching mask hung with it.

She didn't know why she'd kept it, why she didn't just throw it away. It wasn't a part of her life anymore, and represented a past she would rather forget. But it was also a memento of her family, and older, simpler times.

She pulled the garment out, and pulled it off the hangar, looking at it thoughtfully for a moment, before balling it up and throwing it into the corner. Then she went into the small galley kitchen and grabbed a metal bin she used to carry her laundry when she did it once a week, a book of matches, and a small, white plastic bottle. She tossed the costume and other items in the bin, and slowly carried it up to the roof.

Nobody was ever out here. It wasn't even normally supposed to be accessible, but the lock to the door was broken and still had not been repaired. She withdrew the matches and bottle from the bin, uncapped the bottle and poured the clear, strong-smelling liquid into the bin, where it soaked into the fabric.

Then she lit a match.

She hesitated for a moment.

"Good-bye, Ten." she whispered, "and good riddance."

She dropped the match into the bin. The soaked garment caught fire immediately, and she stood in silence, watching it burn.

* * *

"My lab techs are saying it's a slightly different chemical composition from the sample we still have, but they're confirming it's a psychotropic hallucinogen nearly identical to the one the Scarecrow used to use." Barbara Gordon said.

- "I suspected as much." Bruce replied. As he spoke, the hangar opened, and the Batmobile slid into the hangar, nearly silent despite the speed at which it moved. It stopped, and the hangar closed.

"So it's not that they found a batch of Scarecrow's old toxin - they've made it themselves somehow."

- "Looks that way." She confirmed. "We're going to interrogate them pretty seriously to figure out how."

- "Far be it from me to tell you how to do your job," Bruce started, "but I would focus on Wilson."

- "He seems to be the brains of the outfit," Barbara concurred. "Not that that's saying much. I've put the affected officers on paid medical leave until we can develop an anti-toxin and get them treated. They're all being held in observation at Gotham General's psych ward until then, and I've notified the families."

There was a silence that stretched several seconds, before she spoke again. "Bruce, do me a favor, will you?"

- "What is it?" Bruce asked.

- "Thank the kid for me when you get the chance." And she hung up.

And Bruce Wayne, holding the dead phone, found himself thinking of how much like her father she was. He and Jim Gordon had become good friends, in both of his lives.

He had never told Jim about the duality of his existence, but he knew how good a cop Gordon was, and was certain that he had known.

- "Your father would be proud, Barbara." He said quietly as he put down the phone. He heard footsteps behind him as Terry approached.

- "The Commissioner?" Terry asked, and Bruce nodded. "Got somethin' you might find interesting."

- "You grabbed one of the dispensers." Bruce stated.

- "Wow, it's like you're some kind of detective or something." Terry joked, and set the device down on the console. "You should be able to put together an antidote, right?" Bruce nodded.

- "So how's the suit handling?" He asked.

- "It's freakin' _awesome_." Terry replied. "Everything about it - the improved optics, the mobility, the boosted flight. It's amazing."

Bruce let out a deep breath. He'd worked hard on it, and was, to be honest, a little jealous of Terry's ability to operate it, though he knew it was beyond his limits.

"Batman has no limits", he'd once said many, many years ago. But Bruce Wayne did, and he knew what those limits were. The suit was Terry's now - his job was to help him, in any way he could.

- "The shields are especially schway," Terry commented, "but didn't Armory use something similar?"

Bruce nodded. "He developed it while working in Wayne-Powers' small-arms development bureau. WayneTech owns the technology now, and I made a few refinements of my own."

- "Ultra-schway." Terry commented, and Bruce rolled his eyes, irritated at the slang, which he remained uncomfortable with.

"Okay if I take tomorrow night off?" Terry asked.

- "Keep your phone close by." Bruce replied. Then he got to work, and for a while, Terry watched, still suited up. It was a little disconcerting to be standing there with Batman looking over his shoulder. He prepared a program to analyze the compound and prepare to synthesize an antidote, and launched the program.

- "Mr. Wayne?" Terry started to say as he removed the suit's cowl. "Can I ask you a question?"

- "About what?" Wayne replied.

- "About Selina Kyle." Terry said.

- "This isn't about Selina, it's about the Walker girl." Wayne replied testily.

- "Melanie." Terry corrected. "And yes, it is. Why is it so hard for you to believe that she's changed? Is it because Selina Kyle never did?"

Bruce did not immediately answer Terry's question.

The truth was, there had been a time when she would have stopped - when Selina would have retired from being a thief, for him. But differences of opinion and Bruce's own unwavering dedication to his self-imposed mission - to the exclusion of almost all else - had driven a wedge between them. Their relationship had ended, and by the time Selina did finally stop, years later, it was too late.

- "No, it's not." Bruce said slowly. And in the old man's normally even voice, Terry heard his regret.

- "Then why? Melanie has stopped - she's done with that life now, I told you before."

- "She lied to you before," Bruce objected, "what makes you think she wouldn't do it again? Or that she isn't lying to you now?"

- "Melanie _never_ lied to me." Terry replied. "She lied to Batman. You and I both know that's the same thing, but she doesn't. I haven't told her about all of this, I haven't even told Mom. But I'm considering it. She deserves to know the truth."

- "Absolutely not." Bruce replied firmly. "I can't allow you to jeopardize yourself, me, and everything we've accomplished so far by exposing your identity to a criminal."

- "Former criminal. However much you might not want to believe it." Terry insisted.

- "As far as you know." Bruce countered.

For several moments, neither one of them spoke. Then Terry left to change back into his street clothes, and when he returned, he was packing the suit into his backpack.

- "If you don't want me to tell Melanie about you, I get it." Terry said. "You haven't met her. But let me ask you one last question. Did you ever tell Selina Kyle about it - that you were Batman?" He turned away without waiting for a response.

The truth was, he never had, though Selina had guessed on her own. But if she hadn't, would he have told her? He wasn't sure. So he said nothing.

"Good night, Mr. Wayne." Terry said, as he climbed up the stairs without a backward glance.

- "Good night, Terry." Bruce replied, lost in thought.


	5. 05: Date

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** Here's the next chapter.

* * *

**BATMAN BEYOND:  
****Reunited - a TxM Story  
****Part 5**

Terry awoke early, despite having gotten in late the previous night. He took a shower, and was in the process of getting dressed when he heard an insistent knock on the door.

"Just a minute!" He hollered, and threw on a shirt. Then he opened the door to find Max standing there, looking like she had something on her mind.

- "Hey, Ter." she said. "Sorry to bug you this early, but we need to talk."

- "No prob. Come on in." He said, and Max entered. "So, what's up?"

- "It's about your girl Melanie." Max said.

- "You've been doing some digging, I take it." Terry stated matter-of-factly, and Max nodded. "So?"

- "So?" Max replied, sounding slightly incredulous. "Terry, the girl is a thief."

- "You sound like Mr. Wayne." Terry said flatly. "She was a thief - Not anymore. Her parents are in jail, her brother's in Blüdhaven doing who-knows-what, and she's here in Gotham, working, attending classes, and totally on the level. She hasn't had any contact with them in two years."

- "How do you know that?" She asked.

- "I know." He replied, his voice low. The two-year timeframe coincided with what Terry and Melanie had told them when Terry had introduced them - that two years previously was the last time they had contact. But something tugged at the back of her mind.

"Wait a minute." Max suddenly said, frowning. "That business with the Derby two years ago - that illegal poker game you asked me to look into. That's what that was about. You said you were "helping a friend" - You meant her."

Terry nodded.

"You were helping a damn thief?!" Max exclaimed. "And you didn't think maybe to mention that to me at the time? What exactly were you thinking, Terry?!"

Max was pissed, and Terry understood why - he had been aiding and abetting a fugitive, and he'd dragged Max into it.  
The difference was, he had been trying to stop her.

- "I was trying to stop her from doing something stupid." He started to explain. "She told me her family had been abducted - she thought they were in trouble, and she was desperate."

- "So what, she was trying to rob an illegal poker game played by gangsters to raise the ransom for her folks?" Max said skeptically.

- "Exactly. To be honest, there was a time I might have done the same thing, in her shoes." Terry replied. "But I knew that what she was trying to pull would only get her into worse trouble."

- "So you were trying to stop her robbing the Derby, and to help her find her folks." Max stated.

- "That's right." Terry replied. "Come on, Max. You really think I would've gotten you into something illegal?"

- "No, I guess not..." Max said slowly.

- "Anyway, it didn't work out." he continued, "She did six months of a two-year stint in juvie before being released on parole. She's been clear ever since."

- "But you were still going out with Dana at the time." Max said.

- "You told me two years ago to make a decision, and I did." Terry said. "That's why afterwards I never reached out. But everything's different now."

- "Yeah." Max assented. She still looked ticked off, but not as angry as she had earlier. "I mean hell, everyone deserves a second chance, right?"

- "Thanks, Max." Terry said gratefully, glad that Max was willing to trust him, and to trust Melanie. Now, if only Wayne would be so understanding.

Yeah, right.

- "So what now, Batman?" Max added, half-joking.

- "Now, you and me gotta get to class." He said, snatching up his bag, and they left.

* * *

After class, Terry went to find Melanie.  
"Melanie!" He called out when he saw her, and she turned around.

- "Hello, Terry." She said somewhat distantly.

- "Look," he said, "I'm sorry about last night. I didn't want to stand you up like that, but something important came up, and Mr. Wayne really needed my help. I promise I'll make it up to you."

- "I understand, it's your job, it's important." she said, still a bit coldly. "But of course, it's more than that to you, isn't it? You really look up to him."

- "Yeah, I guess I do." Terry said sincerely. "And you're right, it is important. But not as important as us."

- "I'd like to believe that." she said, sounding skeptical.

- "Are you working tonight?" He asked.

- "Until about 8:30, why?" She asked, looking searchingly at him.

- "Because I'd like to make it up to you." He said. "Can I pick you up at your place at 9:00?"

She smiled, and he felt a weight lifted from his shoulders. She was so beautiful when she smiled, it set his heart racing.

- "All right." she said, nodding. "Nine o'clock. But no canceling this time."

- "Promise I'll be there." He said, and he kissed her.

- "I have to go, or I'll be late to class." she said. "Talk to you later."

- "All right." He answered, and she walked away with a slight spring in her step and a smile on her face.

By eight o'clock that evening, Terry's preparations for the night were complete. He'd borrowed a car for the night from Ryan, a classmate who was a good friend of his, promising to bring it back the following morning.

At five minutes to nine, he pulled up in front of Melanie's building, wearing a freshly-pressed shirt, dress pants, and a black blazer, a necktie and polished black dress shoes. He rarely dressed so formally, but this occasion called for it.

He had brought flowers, which he picked up off the seat of the car before locking it, and then entered the building and made his way to the door of Melanie's apartment. He checked his watch: 9:00 PM on the dot.  
He knocked.

"Just a minute!" He heard Melanie's voice from inside. A moment later, the door opened, and his jaw dropped.

Melanie was wearing a black silk gown, an ankle-length sleeveless sheath dress that clung close to her body, emphasizing her figure. She wore eyeliner that accentuated her eyes, and dark red lipstick. The only jewelry she wore was a simple string of pearls around her neck, with matching earrings and a bracelet on her wrist. Her hair, which normally hung loose, was tied in a single plait draped over her shoulder. She wore simple black high-heeled shoes.

"Wow." He said after a moment.

- "You like it?" she asked. "I bought it yesterday."

- "You look absolutely amazing." He said, and she smiled, radiant.

- "Well thank you. You clean up nicely yourself. Are those for me?"

- "Oh, uh, yeah." He said, and held out the bouquet of flowers. She took them from him, thanking, him, and he followed her into the apartment, a small one-bedroom with a galley kitchen.

- "They're very nice." she said as she carefully arranged them in a wide-necked glass bottle she used as an impromptu vase.

"I'm going to go grab a coat." she added once she was done, and she went through a door off to the side that led to the bedroom, and came out wearing a long, black winter coat.

"Shall we go?" she asked.

- "Let's." Terry stood, and held the door for her, then closed it behind him. She locked up the apartment, and when they reached the car, he again held the door for her, then closed it once she was seated, and got in.

He started the engine and they took off.

They arrived at the Iceberg Lounge, an upscale restaurant in one of Gotham's swankier districts, which had been a fixture for the city's well-to-do for decades. Originally opened by Oswald "the Penguin" Cobblepot and used primarily as a legitimate front for his illegal activities, it was now operated as a fully legitimate business, owned by a consortium of wealthy Gothamites. Terry was aware of this, through Wayne. He also knew that Bruce Wayne had occasionally frequented the Lounge in his younger days, though he had not set foot inside in years.

He also knew that this was not the kind of place someone like him usually frequented, but he wanted this date to be extra special, even if it wiped out most of his savings to date.

A valet parked the car, and the two of them were stopped at the entrance by a statuesque brunette in a rather risqué black outfit. They checked Melanie's coat at the front, while Terry addressed the waitress.

"McGinnis," he said,"table for 2."

- "Right this way, please." the waitress replied, and led them to a table near a waist-high railing, behind which was a sizable artificial pond in which he saw a towering iceberg. Seals lounged around near the iceberg, which gave the Lounge its name, or swam in the water.

Melanie sat down, with Terry seated opposite her.

He declined the waitress's offer of cocktails, ordering simply two glasses of water to start with.

He noted that most of the patrons seemed to be older, many in their 30s or 40s, if not older. A few couples their age, or close to it, but not many. A band on a raised dais near the bar played easy, older music - a sharp contrast from the harsher, more fast-paced rock tunes of places like the J-Bar. There was a wide dance floor in another area, and many of the patrons were dancing to the tune.

Melanie looked around, surprised at what she was seeing.

"I had no idea there was a place like this here." She said. "How do you know about it?"

- "I heard about it from Mr. Wayne." Terry said, "It's not exactly the kind of place I could afford to come to too often. But I wanted to do something really special."

- "Well, that it certainly is." Melanie said. "Thank you."

They chatted for a few minutes, until a waitress came by and took their orders. Terry declined her offer of wine recommendations, thanking the waitress but telling her they were fine with water.

Soon, their orders arrived - They'd both ordered the same thing, and ate in relative silence, enjoying the music, the food, and each other's company.  
When they were finished, the same waitress came by to dispose of their plates and drop off the check.

_'There go my savings._' Terry thought as he glanced it over, and paid it. That done, he stood.

The band began to play a slow waltz, and Melanie asked him if he wanted to dance.

He gulped.  
- "I'd love to, but I'm afraid I don't know how to dance this."

- "I do." she said with a smile. "Follow my lead."

- "Will do, then." He took her hand, and they made their way onto the dance floor, where he followed Melanie's whispered instructions and her lead, as they joined the crowd slowly dancing to the band's tune.

"This is nice." He said, and she nodded her assent as they danced.

Once the waltz ended and the crowd dispersed slightly, she led them to the edge of the dance floor and they sat in one of the chairs they found there.

The chairs happened to be near the railing that overlooked the artificial pond, and Melanie watched the seals, as the animals swam, or crawled up onto the ice, occasionally barking noisily. He felt her rest her head on his shoulder, and didn't move.

They went back onto the floor for one more dance, a somewhat livelier number, which Terry rather enjoyed. Once that one was done, she stepped off the dance floor, and he followed.

"I had a great time," she said, "but it's getting late."

- "I'll take you home." He answered. They retrieved her coat, then the car, and left, driving slowly, though at this late hour traffic was nearly nonexistent.

They arrived at her building, and she invited him up. She hung her coat on a rack in the entrance, and took off her shoes. His jacket and shoes joined them, and the two of them walked into the living area, where Terry sat down on the couch.

"That was a very nice evening." she said. "I guess that would be what you'd call a proper date."

- "Yeah," he said, "it sure beats pizza and vid games at Dan's."

- "I don't imagine, even working for someone like Bruce Wayne, that you'd be able to afford a place like that too often." She said.

- "No, that's true." He admitted. "But it was worth it."

- "Yes, that it was." She replied slowly. She turned towards him and he watched her, his heart beating so fast he was sure she could hear it.

She walked slowly until she stood directly in front of him. She leaned in, and slowly unfastened the necktie and slipped it from his collar. As she did so she moved down towards him, and he rose to meet her, and her lips found his.

As they kissed, she deftly unbuttoned his shirt, and then pushed it off his shoulders and down his arms, feeling the strength of him under her fingertips. Her hand slowly slid lower and found him, and he moaned softly at her touch. She felt his arms enfold her as he sought to pull her to him, but she resisted.

Slipping away, she stepped back, her eyes locked on his as she slid the straps of the dress from her shoulders and pulled them down, gradually sliding the garment down with tantalizing slowness.

She stepped back towards him, leaving the dress on the floor, and this time when he reached for her she pressed herself against him and kissed him again, urgently, her tongue finding his as her hands explored his bare chest. At last they broke apart, and she whispered breathlessly into his ear "Maybe we should move to the bedroom."

She stood, still holding his hand, and pulled him after her, and he stood up as well. Then he picked her up in his arms, eliciting a cry of surprise. And she laughed as he carried her from the living room into the bedroom, and gently lay her on the bed.

She unhooked the front clasp of her bra and shrugged it off, even as she felt his fingers slip inside the waistband of her panties and gradually pull them down her legs and off, leaving her completely nude on the bed.

"You are so beautiful..." He whispered hoarsely, and then hurriedly stripped off his pants, then his boxers, before sliding into bed with her.

They kissed hungrily, passionately, their bodies slick with perspiration, their hands exploring each other's bodies, and without hesitation she gave herself to him, losing herself in the delicious ecstasy of his embrace.

* * *

The sun shining through the window woke her, and Melanie felt a weight on her shoulder. She saw that Terry's arm was draped over her, and smiled as she remembered the events of the previous night. She felt the steady rise and fall of his chest against her back as he breathed, still asleep, and shifted, settling herself closer to him. She sighed contentedly.

Soon afterwards she felt him stir as he awoke, and she slowly turn around to face him. Sitting up, he looked around sleepily for a moment and found himself in an unfamiliar room.

Then he saw her, lying naked next to him, looking at him. He kissed her, tenderly.

"Good morning." She said quietly when they parted, smiling.

- "After a night like that, could it be anything but?" He replied, and she smiled.

- "I don't think so." She said. "I wish we could stay here like this forever."  
He gently caressed her cheek, finding himself agreeing.

His doubts, his worries about the duplicitous nature of his double life and the pressures it placed on his relationship had burned away in the heat of their passion, and he would have liked nothing better than to just keep them away and simply be with her.

But he could not. It simply wasn't in his nature to do so. He pushed those thoughts away, filing them in a mental box to be dealt with later.

Fortunately, it was Saturday, so he didn't have to worry about getting to class. Reluctantly, he pulled himself out of bed. He needed a shower, and he needed to return Ryan's car.

- "I gotta bring the car back." he said. "Are you working today?"

She pouted, like she didn't want to think about it.

- "Yeah," she said. "Not until later, though."

- "Well then, I'll be right back." He said with a grin.

As good as his word, he returned to the apartment - this time on his motorcycle - within the hour.

He had taken the time, before dropping off the car, to stop by his dorm and change into clean - and less formal - clothes; jeans, a plain black t-shirt, and a tan jacket.

When Terry arrived she was sitting on the porch, wearing a short, dark-red dress and a black jacket. She was petting a dark-gray cat, which purred contentedly. As he pulled the bike up in front of the building the cat looked up, and then scampered.

"Cute." Terry commented, grinning.

- "It's Mrs. Allen's cat - the landlady. I think his name's Arthur." She replied. Then she stood, and stepped down towards him. "So, what's the plan?" She asked.

- "Oh, I'm sure we'll think of something." He said vaguely, and she laughed.

She put on the helmet and got on the bike behind him, and he rode off. Whatever they did was fine by her, she thought. As long as they could be together, that was all that mattered.


	6. 06: The Game

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**And here's Chapter 6. This one takes place approximately three weeks after the events of the last chapter.

* * *

**BATMAN BEYOND:  
Reunited - a TxM Story  
Part 6**

Over the following weeks, Terry and Melanie saw little of each other except on campus during the day and at lunch, largely due to Melanie taking on additional shifts at the Kitchen whenever possible, as well as the fact that Terry's job kept him busy. However, they were in almost daily phone contact, as Terry usually called Melanie in the evenings, or else she would call him whenever she had a few minutes free if she was still at work. They made plans to meet at the university for one of the most anticipated sports matches of the current season, which would pit Gotham State's Foxbats against their long-time rivals, the Metropolis University Cavaliers.

That Friday evening, Terry rode his motorcycle into the already almost-packed parking lot behind the university's huge indoor stadium, and had some difficulty finding a spot. Fortunately, he'd bought the tickets well in advance, so he knew they'd have great seats. He hoped the evening wouldn't be...interrupted, though he was habitually not optimistic about his chances. He was meeting Melanie, Max and Chelsea at the stadium. Having parked and locked the bike, he threaded his way through the thickening crowd, until he reached the entrance.

"Hey, Ter!" Max hailed as he drew near. He was not surprised to see their mutual friend Jared Tate was also there. Terry was pretty sure Jared had a thing for Max. "Glad you could make it."

- "Well, since I've got the tickets, it'd be a bit of a pain for you guys if I didn't." He said, as Melanie stepped towards him and embraced him, kissing him.

Then he looked from Max to Jared, grinning. "So what, are we double-dating?"

Jared, looking embarrassed, started to stammer a reply, and Max laughed.  
- "I dunno, Ter." She said, and then smiling mischievously, she turned to Jared. "Are we?"

- "So, where's Chelsea?" Terry said, changing the subject.

- "Still waiting on her to...Oh wait, there she is." Max said, and waved.

- "Hey, guys." Chelsea, wearing a miniskirt (as usual) and tank top in the Foxbats' black-and-yellow colors, said enthusiastically as she approached.

- "Hey, Chels." Max replied. They slowly made their way in, catching up all the while, until they reached their seats.

At last, the game started. The Cavaliers were a good team and quickly seized an early lead, but Nelson Nash, who was captain of the Gotham team, was a brilliant player, and by the end of the second quarter the score was tied.

Terry watched the game with some interest. There were several of Hill High's old team playing for the Foxbats, none of whom Terry knew personally except Nelson.  
In High School, the two had hated each other, and for a long time Nelson was the bane of Terry's existence.  
He'd mellowed out some, but he was still a jerk. Terry reflected that the two of them would never be friends, though at least they more or less got along now - helped by the fact that Chelsea, whom Nelson liked and had briefly dated, was one of Terry's friends, as well as the fact that they rarely saw each other in any case.

Midway through the third quarter, Terry's phone rang in his pocket.  
"Oh, slag it." He swore under his breath as he pulled out the phone and saw the number.

- "Let me guess," Melanie said, sounding irritated. "Your boss is calling."

- "I'm sorry," he said, "I have to take this."

- "You know," Chelsea spoke up, "You work way too much for this guy. You'd think he'd at least let you have a night off every once in a while."

- "I know," Terry said, "but he needs me. I'll try to get back as soon as I can."

Melanie looked disappointed at yet another evening they'd planned together being disrupted, but said nothing.  
He kissed her, promising he'd call as soon as he was done.

- "I'll make it up to you, I promise." He said.

- "You always say that." she said.

- "And I come through on it, right?" He asked, and she nodded reluctantly.

- "I just sometimes wonder if maybe this job isn't more important to you than us, Terry." She replied, sounding disappointed.

- "Nothing matters to me more than us." He said. "I'll get this taken care as quickly as possible. Call you when I'm done."

- "All right." She said, still looking disappointed.

He kissed her again, then stood and carefully threaded his way out of the row and ran, silently cursing Wayne's knack for calling him at precisely the moment he didn't want to have to run off, even as he picked up the phone.

* * *

Even though he'd been using it for close to a month, the capabilities of the new suit still amazed him. In flight, the larger, more flexible wings made him far more agile than his old suit's glider wings.

_'Bet I could almost give Warhawk a run for his money in the flight department now' _He thought, grinning at the idea of sparring with the irascible second-generation Leaguer on truly equal terms. But he was closing in on his target now, so he needed to be careful.

The target was a Foxteca manufacturing plant. In the past year, the company had, despite ostensibly being a competitor, developed closer and closer ties with WayneTech - the new name of what, in his lifetime, Terry had always known as Wayne-Powers Enterprises.  
Shortly after the Joker incident Bruce had, after months of painstaking effort, finally reacquired his majority stockholding. Then, with the approval of the Board of Directors, he stripped "Powers" from the company's name. Plus, Foxteca founder and CEO Lucius Fox, Jr. was a long-time friend of Mr. Wayne, as his father had been. He'd been vice-president of Wayne Enterprises after his father retired, until Powers took over and fired him. He founded Foxteca not long after that. And now Walter Shreeve - a.k.a. "Shriek" - was apparently attacking it. Industrial sabotage didn't seem to fit his usual M.O., but then again, what other options did a dreg like him have - besides the obvious.

"Remember, Shreeve is just a pawn - he's probably been hired to do this." Bruce said. "We need to find out who."

- "You want me to brace him, or leave it up to Gotham's Finest?" Terry asked.

- "Worry about taking him down first." Wayne said. "And be careful - the area he's in right now opens up pretty widely, giving him a good field in which to attack."  
At precisely that second, as Terry was closing in Shriek struck from long range, and he narrowly avoided the attack.  
Instantly, Terry activated a neat new feature the old man had told him about, which he hadn't had the chance to try out yet - a sophisticated sound-dampening system, which captured sound waves above a certain frequency or volume, and automatically broadcast a signal exactly opposite, canceling them out. The system could even be set to block out sound entirely.

"Whoops - that was close." Terry quipped, closing in even as he nimbly dodged a second strike.

The last time he'd tangled with Shriek wearing the old Batsuit, his eardrums had been damaged. For several weeks afterwards he'd been unable to hear without using a specialized headset Bruce had designed. He guessed that this was probably what had motivated Bruce to install this new system in the suit, and was thankful for it. He withdrew a flash bang pellet from his utility belt and threw it, turning away as he did so.

Shriek struck immediately, but the pellet blew six feet away, almost directly in front of him, with a harsh bang and a blinding flash of light, which judging from his reaction, temporarily overwhelmed the single camera in Shreeve's helmet.

"Nicely done." Bruce commented, sounding impressed - for him, anyway.

- "Almost like I've done it before." Terry commented jokingly.

Bruce nodded, acknowledging the comment - the flash bang was a new touch, but he had indeed done well during the first half of his last confrontation with the sound engineer turned terrorist, at least until Shreeve had overwhelmed him - damaging his eardrums and rendering him temporarily deaf.

Temporarily blinded and disoriented, Shriek was motionless, trying to get his sensors back online. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Terry aimed and threw a pair of batarangs, nailing both of the arm-mounted sonic transmitters on Shriek's suit, disabling them.  
Terry landed, the wings collapsing into the backpack as he disengaged the suit's flight systems.  
"Guess that's about it, Shreeve." He said as he stepped up.

- "Don't you ever learn, Batman?" Shriek replied contemptuously, as with his damaged hand he went for the more powerful central emitter. Much as he had the last time they'd met. Terry, anticipating his reaction, triggered the sound-dampening equipment in the cowl again, which now totally blocked out any sound waves whatsoever.  
The blast from the attack rattled his teeth, nearly throwing him off his feet. But other than a faint vibration, his ears caught nothing.

"Sorry?" Terry said mockingly, "I can't hear a thing you're saying." It was a pity Shriek's helmet obscured his features completely, because right at that second Terry would've loved to see the look on his face.

Then he struck, launching himself at Shreeve in a flying tackle that sent them both slamming into a nearby wall. And then Terry drove his fist into the center of the torso of the suit Shreeve wore, permanently destroying that central component and disabling it. He disengaged the Batsuit's sound-dampening systems, just in time to hear the distant, shrill whine of police sirens. Shriek tried to get away from him, but Terry almost casually swept his legs out from under him, dropping him to the floor again. Then he took off Shriek's helmet and slammed it as hard as he could into the ground, until the helmet broke in two.  
Just then, multiple police cruisers pulled up, officers got out, weapons drawn and aimed at them. An officer he recognized, Detective Miguel Alcana, nodded.

"Thanks for the assist, Batman." He said. "We'll take it from here."

"Gotcha." Batman replied, and while Alcana arrested Shreeve, he took off.

* * *

Meanwhile, at Gotham State, the game continued, the audience increasingly excited and tense as it went on.

By the time the third quarter ended, the Foxbats were up three points. When the fourth quarter began, the Cavaliers scored again, but subsequent attempts were foiled by the Foxbats' defense, while Nelson led the team's offensive efforts to score again. When the game ended, the Metropolis Cavaliers - previously favorites to win by a very long way - were defeated, losing the game by a margin of seven points. The mood on that half of the stadium, when the game ended, was jubilant, with everyone standing and cheering at the upset.

Except one person.

Throughout the third and fourth quarters, Melanie had kept glancing back at the entrance to the stadium, hoping against hope that Terry would return. The game ended with no sign of him.

Chelsea invited everyone out to celebrate, but Melanie declined.  
"I'm just tired," she said. "I think I'll go home. See you tomorrow?"

- "Okay, sure thing." Chelsea replied, and Melanie stood, threading her way through the crowd that thronged towards the exits.

She stopped just outside, taking one last look around. After a few minutes, a dejected expression on her face, she kept walking. She avoided the parking lot, circling around the side of the stadium until she reached a relatively deserted side street. She could have caught a cab, but decided not to. Melanie left the campus behind and, hands in her pockets, started the long walk back to her flat.

As she drew closer to home she kept a wary eye out, as she usually did coming home at night, since after all this neighborhood was not the safest. Despite the GCPD's citywide crackdown on gang activity in recent months, she knew the T's had a foothold somewhere in the area. She slowed her pace, her senses on high alert.

The thing about being a thief was, you learned to be mindful of your surroundings and developed a very keen sense for where things were, even in the dark. She was very good at that, which was how she perceived that she'd picked up a tail. Discreetly glancing over her shoulder, she saw two guys wearing grey slacks and jackets. One was tall and built like a professional wrestler, and wore a black watch cap on a shaved head. The other was smaller and thinner, and covered greasy dark hair with a grey baseball cap. Both had their faces painted white, with a red "T".

- "Hey, check it out, Russ." The smaller man muttered to his companion, staring avidly at their prey. "Pretty schway stuff, huh?"

- "VERY schway." The other agreed with a vicious grin. Neither man realized they'd been made. Yet.

Not until the smaller man rushed towards her and she spun on her heel before unleashing a left-footed dragon kick that slammed him in the gut, throwing him back against the wall, the impact knocking the wind out of him.

"You little bitch," the big one, Russ, snarled, "I'm gonna break you in half..." He ran towards her. But he was big, stupid, and he telegraphed his move, so that when he unleashed a powerful right cross she slipped past, tripped him, and when he stumbled she struck, slamming her elbow into the side of his head, just behind the right ear.  
He crumpled to the ground, the blow knocking him unconscious.

The little guy was staggering to his feet when he saw his buddy taken down in seconds flat.

"Wha...what'd you do to Russ?" He stammered.

- "Last chance." She replied coldly. "Walk away, now."  
He did not, but reached for a gun tucked into the waistband of his pants.  
Before Melanie could move, there was a flash of metal, and the gun fell to the ground with a clatter. The next second, the dreg was airborne, dangling upside down from a line wrapped around his ankles. A moment later, the line went slack, dropping him to the pavement. He lay there, knocked out cold, as Melanie stared.

"I was passing by." She heard a low voice from over her head. "Hope you don't mind."

- "As a matter of fact, I do mind." She said, looking up. Batman was crouched on the wall, about ten feet up the side of the building, grinning. "Besides, I had it under control."

- "I'm sure you did." He replied. Then he dropped from his perch to the ground, standing in front of her.

- "Then what do you want? To keep an eye on me?" she asked, her tone rising.

- "Something like that." was all Batman said, which would've infuriated her more, if not for something about his tone of voice. He was no longer grinning.

- "Well don't waste your time. I'm on my own now, and have been for a while." She said coldly. "I'm out of the life - for good. So unless you're offering me a job, don't ever "pass by" again."

She shouldered him aside and walked on. Behind her, Batman stood still, looking at her.

- "Take care of yourself, Melanie." he said quietly, and she stopped.  
She turned around, but he had already disappeared.

Had that really been concern she heard in his voice - as if he really did care? She didn't see why he would. What was she to him, except a liar and a thief?  
"Maybe he's not as much of asshole as all that." She said aloud, though there was nobody around. He did get her letter to Terry, two years earlier. Shaking her head, she put Batman and everything to do with him out of her mind.

She wondered about Terry, who had promised he would call. There had been no word and, crestfallen, she continued walking, wondering whether their relationship was really as important to him as it was to her.

As if on cue, her phone rang.  
"Terry?"

- "Sorry I couldn't make it back in time." He said, sounding genuinely distressed. "The thing with Mr. Wayne took longer to sort out than I expected."

- "I just...I wish you would tell me what you do for him that's so important, and why he couldn't get someone else to help him." she said, and she knew she sounded irritated, but she couldn't help it.

- "It's complicated." Terry said evasively. "Some day, I'll tell you about it."

- "I wish you would, Terry." She said sadly. "I just can't help but feel like you don't trust me."

- "Of course I trust you, Melanie." He said earnestly. She waited to hear more, but for a while there was silence.

_'But he doesn't,'_ Terry thought, _'and that's the problem.'_  
God, how he wished he could tell her. Even more strongly, he wished that Wayne could somehow see what Terry saw when he looked at her. Not the thief she had been, but the honest, kind, beautiful young woman she really was.

"Melanie," he said, "tomorrow, my Mom has this thing she had us start doing. Where it's just me, her, and Matt. And we spend the entire day just hanging out, as a family. It would mean a lot to me if you were there too."

Her heart leaped in her chest when she heard.

_Family._

She'd almost forgotten the meaning of the word, in the past two years. Forgotten what it felt like to be part of a real family, if she had ever truly known.

- "And what about your boss?" She asked, unable to keep an edge out of her voice. "He keeps you on such a short leash, what's he got to say about it?"

Terry heard, but didn't bring it up. He remembered the first time they'd done it. He especially remembered that morning, while he was on the phone with Mr. Wayne, and she'd taken the phone, briefly speaking to Wayne before hanging up on him. He'd been such a dreg all day, worrying about Wayne, and she had gotten upset because of it. To make it up to her, a few days later he took them all out to dinner - including Wayne, who as he'd said, in a weird way, Terry counted as family as well. But since then, at least once a month, they did it again - he left the phone at home, and spent the entire day with just Matt and his mother.  
Wayne, however much Terry knew it irritated him, had never said a word in protest.

- "He knows about it - I'm sure he doesn't like it, but he's never stopped me going." Terry said. "Do you think..."

She didn't let him finish his question.  
- "Of course. I'd love to." She said. "You want me to meet you?"

- "No, I'll pick you up first thing tomorrow morning." He said.

- "I'll see you then." she said tremulously. "I love you."

- "I love you too, Melanie." He said. "Good night."

She hung up and pocketed the phone. She was almost at her flat, and there was a spring in her step as she climbed the stairs up to her floor that had not been there before.

* * *

Terry disconnected the call, slipping his phone back in a compartment of the suit's utility belt, then put his cowl back on.

A hundred and fifty stories up the side of a building this late at night, there wasn't much chance he'd be seen or overheard, but he had not wanted the old man to eavesdrop, which he might have had he used the suit's integrated communications system. He continued his patrol, but he remained pensive, preoccupied by the encounter with Melanie.

Clearly, Melanie despised Batman. At the same time, while he had decided to wipe the slate clean and start over, the last time Melanie and Batman had met, she had ditched him at the Jokerz' hideout, a dangerous situation and one that could have gotten him killed.

He knew why she had done it, of course. And in light of what he had subsequently seen and heard, knew that whatever else, her feelings for Terry McGinnis had been, and still were genuine. But all of this contributed to his hesitation about the precarious nature of their relationship, and his uncertainty of whether he should reveal to her that Terry McGinnis and Batman were one and the same. How would she take it, if and when she found out? The thought sometimes kept him up at night.

He had made the mistake of keeping it a secret from Dana, and it had destroyed their relationship. And he didn't want to lose Melanie the same way. But he was afraid that even if he did tell her, he might still lose her. But the more Terry thought about it, the more he felt that was a risk he would be willing to take.

After another hour, he knocked off for the night, advising Bruce that he was heading home.  
Once he reached his dorm he set his alarm clock, and within moments after his head hit the pillow, he was asleep.


	7. 07: Encounter

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **This is the next chapter in the story, which skips forward several weeks from the end of the previous chapter.  
Enjoy!

* * *

**BATMAN BEYOND:  
Reunited - a TxM Story**  
**Part 7**

Melanie Walker shivered, despite the long, heavy coat she wore, as she slowly walked down the streets that led from Deckard's Kitchen to Vreeland Park, one of her favorite spots in the city.  
It wasn't, strictly speaking, on the way to her flat, but it wasn't that far out of the way. Like much of the city, the Park was covered in a thin blanket of white, and a light snow continued to fall. As she entered the park, she reflected over the memories it carried, and thought of the events of the past couple of months.  
It was funny, she thought. In two years, she barely ever came here, but since reconnecting with Terry, she'd been here often.

She sighed.

Terry had been working pretty often, and she had tried to take on extra shifts at the Kitchen whenever she could as well, so she hadn't seen as much of him as she would've liked. He'd been late or had to cancel several times, and she was starting to get irritated. More to the point, she had a sneaking suspicion that there was something he was not telling her - he was frustratingly vague where his mysterious job was concerned.

She pushed those thoughts aside as she crossed the park. She loved Terry more than anything, and she trusted him. She knew he loved her, and for now that was enough. If there was something he wanted to tell her, he would.  
"I just wish he _would_ tell me." She muttered aloud.

On the other hand, he had made an effort to make time for her, for which she was grateful. And when he had made the suggestion that Melanie too be a part of their regular family get-togethers, Mary McGinnis had embraced her with open arms, as if she too were a part of the family.  
In the month since, they had done so twice, and both times had been a source of great enjoyment and happiness.

She often thought of her brother Jack, working on his own in Blüdhaven, not far away, and sometimes wish he lived closer, so that he could be a part of her new life. She called him often, but he seemed content in Blüdhaven, and that was enough, for now.

Suddenly, she stopped. She felt a prickle on the back of her neck, and had an uncomfortable feeling that she was being watched. She listened carefully, and heard soft, almost inaudible footfalls coming from behind her. Regular, deep breaths. Drawing closer. She turned around, and nearly jumped when she saw a massive black dog standing not five feet behind her.

The animal was some kind of Dane mix, almost four feet tall. Even in the dim glow of the lights from the clock, she saw a sturdy brown collar around his neck.

The dog slowly padded closer, a low, growl rumbling from its throat. Its ears were raised high, alert, and its demeanor seemed to her cautious, but not aggressive. She guessed he was not going to attack. Even if it did, she could never outrun it.

Moved by some instinct, she averted her eyes, avoiding direct eye contact, and crouched down, which placed her at eye level with the big dog, though she still did not look directly at it.  
The dog stopped growling as it neared, sniffing the air. It stood almost directly in front of her now, and she tentatively held out one hand, ready to pull it back if necessary.

The dog sniffed her hand, and then she felt its warm, rough tongue on her skin as it licked her fingers.  
She smiled, and a pleased expression appeared on the dog's big, square face as she shifted her hand to scratch behind his ears. As she started petting the dog, she felt thin, irregular bumps on his skin, which she realized were scars.

She glanced at the name on his tags, and chuckled wryly.  
"Well Hi, Ace." she said. "Looks like you've had some troubles of your own. But you're a good dog, aren't you?"

- "He likes you." A deep, gravelly voice suddenly said, and she looked up sharply.  
She had been so focused on the dog that she had not heard the old man approach, but now she saw him, standing just outside the light from the nearest street lamp.

He was tall, just a little over six feet, and his shoulders were broad, though stooped with age. He leaned on a lacquered wood cane, and as he stepped forward into the light she saw that he walked with a slight limp.  
She guessed his age to be at least 85. His hair was white, close-cropped, but the most arresting feature of the aged face were the eyes, deep-set, blue and piercing. He looked straight at her, almost wary.  
"It's very rare for him to be so trusting, at least at first." The old man continued to say.

- "Is that so?" She said quietly, warily eyeing the old man as she stood. "Well, seems to be a good dog."  
Ace barked loudly, as if he knew they were talking about him. Then he padded off, long tail wagging rhythmically from side to side, to stand beside the old man, who absently scratched behind his ear with his free hand.

- "He is." The old man said. "Ace and I have been through a lot together. But it's been my experience that he is an excellent judge of people and their character, Ms. Walker."

Melanie's blood ran cold as she heard her name, and she glared suspiciously at the old man.  
- "How do you know my name?" She demanded. "Who are you?"

- "My name is Bruce Wayne." He said. "Terry McGinnis works for me, and I felt it time that you and I had a brief discussion."

- "I don't see that what Terry does in his personal life is any of your business." She said acidly. "Besides, I'm just an assistant chef and waitress at a diner."

- "You're also a convicted thief." Wayne replied evenly.

- "Is that what this is about? You don't trust me because of what I did in the past." She retorted. "Well if Terry has told you anything about me, he's told you that part of my life is over."

- "There's a school of thought that says that it is your actions that define who you are," Wayne said, "So you'll forgive me if I don't take your word for it."

- "No, I don't think I will." she snapped, her voice rising with her temper. "I've left that life behind, and I'm never going back. I'd appreciate it if you would leave the past where it belongs, in the past!"

She spun on her heel and started to walk away. But once she was several yards away, she stopped.  
"And for the record, I _don't care_ if you believe me or not. Terry does - and that's enough for me." She added. "Good night, Mr. Wayne."

And with that parting shot, she walked as quickly as she dared out of the park.

Bruce Wayne stood for a moment longer, Ace standing obediently at his side, and shook his head.  
Then he slowly turned around and, with Ace at his heel, limped slowly out of the park and back towards the car, ruminating over what had just transpired. In everything Bruce Wayne did, he operated on the basis of absolute certainty. But now, there was just a shadow of a doubt, and that irritated him.

As he crossed Vreeland Park - named, he knew, for the grandfather of socialite Veronica Vreeland, with whom billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne had an on-again-off-again relationship for several years, until she married her fifth husband. He had known her daughter Bunny, too - a sweet girl, far too much like her mother. But that was all a long, long time ago.

The recollection brought to mind the most serious relationship of his somewhat rakish life, with Barbara. That relationship, which had straddled both of his lives, had lasted longer than almost any other, but it had eventually come to an end, and they had drifted apart - something he sometimes regretted despite the disparity in their ages. Looking back, he now recognized - albeit begrudgingly - that the blame for that lay perhaps mostly with him.

Then he thought, too, of Selina Kyle, another one with whom Bruce - and Batman - had had a relationship over the years, but it had not lasted either, nor had the only other truly serious relationship he had ever had.

And his thoughts drifted from Catwoman to the fiery young woman he had met tonight - Melanie Walker, the latest Ten of the Royal Flush Gang. He had faced the Royal Flush Gang five times over his career, each iteration different from the previous ones. This latest iteration of the gang, which Terry had faced, had by no means been the most dangerous he had seen. But, he reflected, they had been one of the most troublesome, and this young woman who supposedly had left the gang behind was an unknown factor, and one that he did not trust.

Had she really turned her back on her criminal past? He found that unlikely. There was a parallel between this young woman and her relationship with Terry and Bruce's own, complicated relationship with Selina. There was even some similarities in background between the two. But despite all that, Bruce now reflected that the Walker girl could not possibly have been more different from Selina. Whether that was a good thing or a bad, only time would tell.

* * *

Ace climbed into the car, then Bruce got into the driver's seat and the long, slow-slung dark blue limousine swept slowly out of the parking lot and down the street, as he headed home.

"Old bastard." Melanie muttered angrily as she glanced behind her and saw the old man turn to walk slowly away, his dog following at his side. Ace was a good dog. Pity the same could not be said for his owner.

She kept walking, and when she finally reached her flat, she took off her coat and flung it onto the couch, kicked off her shoes, and collapsed into her bed fully dressed, sobbing quietly into her pillow, wondering if she would ever be truly free of the stigma of her family's legacy. She had cast them off and was on her own now. But it seemed like no matter what she did, some people - like that old bastard Wayne - would continue to hold her past crimes against her.

She glanced at the picture on her night stand, a picture of her and Terry from their last date.  
"He knows who and what I was, and he still loves me." She said. "That's all that really matters."

She changed and slipped into bed, and despite all of the thoughts that troubled her, soon fell into a deep sleep.


	8. 08: Stories

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **Two chapter in one day! This one picks up the day after the previous chapter. As ever, enjoy, and feel free to leave a review.

* * *

**BATMAN BEYOND:  
Reunited - a TxM Story**  
**Part 8**

Terry McGinnis had never much liked winter. Not for any real particular reason, though if he had to pick one, it would be the cold. As he walked across the campus from his last class of the day and headed back to his dorm, the snow crunching underneath his feet, he could feel the cold temperatures, even bundled up as he was in a heavy coat, with a scarf around his neck, and a sweater below that. And he cursed the fact that he'd forgotten to wear gloves, his hands jammed into the pockets of his coat.

Finally, he reached his dorm, and slammed the door shut behind him.  
With a sigh, he sat down to his homework, setting an alert on his phone to ring at 6:45. That would allow him plenty of time to get ready and meet Melanie at their usual spot at 7:30. It had been weeks since they'd been able to have a proper date, and when they had planned something, half the time he was late or couldn't make it due to his job. She'd pressed him for more information about what he did, but he was cagey about it, and he could tell she was getting suspicious.

"I can't keep putting this off forever." He said aloud to the empty room. "I have to talk to Bruce one more time, but sooner or later, I'm going to tell her."

He'd made his decision. Despite his fear of her reaction, he would sooner take the chance than to keep it from her and lose her, like he'd lost Dana. He set that aside for later, sat down, and got to work.

The afternoon wore on, and he steadily worked his way through his essays for Eldridge and Prior, and was just starting on his assignment for Professor Langstrom, when his phone rang. He glanced up at the digital clock on his wall, and saw that it was only 6:30.

"McGinnis." He said irritably when he picked up the phone. "You _can't_ be serious. Okay, I'm on my way."

* * *

The Gotham City Museum of Science and Technology was a tall, white spire that, to Terry, looked out-of-place amidst the sea of dark steel, concrete and glass that was most of Gotham. He knew that it had replaced the old Weapons museum, and he also knew that it was currently hosting the World Science Symposium, a gathering of some of the world's finest scientific minds to discuss new advances in technology, science, and medicine.

Hence the intrusion of Stanley Labowski, a conspiracy-theorist nut job with a penchant for incoherent discourse and liberal use of high explosives. The good news, such as it was: Relatively speaking, Mad Stan was a pushover. The likes of Shriek, Spellbinder, Blight or Inque were much more problematic and difficult to deal with.

He landed on top of the museum, engaged the suit's cloaking systems, and let himself in through a window.

He slowly made his way into the museum's massive auditorium on the ground floor, where he saw the majority of the Symposium's attendants clustered around one area. He instantly clocked Commissioner Gordon, District Attorney Sam Young, and Mayor William Davis, and vaguely wondered what they were doing there. Then he found Stan, standing in the center of the atrium and carrying, unusually, what looked to Terry like an anti-tank launcher.

_'Well, looks like Stan's made some upgrades. Fortunately, so have I.'_

Stan was in the middle of his usual anti-establishment raving when he lined up the launcher at one of the exhibits, which near as Terry could figure - physics not being his strong point - had to do with new discoveries made at a facility that used a particle accelerator in Europe. Then he pulled the trigger, and the rocket-propelled grenade's four-pound warhead obliterated the display in a massive explosion.

"You see that?" Stan railed, looking around with a kind of manic glee. "That's the only way to get free from the technocracy, man! BLOW IT ALL UP!"

Stan prepared to reload his launcher, but the single RPG he had left suddenly flew from his hands and out the nearest window.

"What the hell?" He wondered, when suddenly the launcher followed, and this time he noticed the line wrapped around it.

- "Didn't your mother ever teach you not to play with fireworks inside the house?"

Stan whipped around, and saw Batman perched up the wall, holding his launcher. Then the Bat broke the launcher in half.

- "You can't stop the revolution, Batman!" Stan ranted, drawing twin .45 caliber pistols from holsters on his belt. "You, the cops, you're all slaves of the technocratic system, but you're just going to go down in flames with it."

_'I'm going to be late for a date because of this lunatic?' _Terry moaned internally. _'That's just great.'_

By the time Stan raised his weapons and fired Terry was already on the move, and he'd engaged the electromagnetic shields. He blocked one shot, while a second sailed past his head, lodging itself high in the wall behind him, and a third hit him in the shoulder.  
The suit's improved ballistic protection helped, and the bullet didn't penetrate. Nonetheless, his shoulder felt like he'd taken a sledgehammer to it.

"My turn." Terry quipped as he fired the two wrist launchers, and two small, red metal discs shot towards Stan, knocking the two guns out of his hands. Terry had almost reached Stan now, and had an idea. Electromagnetic shield still active, he swung the arm like he was throwing a punch, and essentially ended up launching the projected electromagnetic shield on a wide curving track that sent it slamming into Stan's face, throwing him off his feet.

_'I just punched a guy in the face from eight feet away. Way schway.' _Terry thought, grinning. _'Can't believe that worked.' _  
He deactivated the shield as he neared.

By the time Stan was back on his feet, Terry was ready, and when he swung, Terry slipped the punch, sliding inside his defenses, and retaliated with a vicious uppercut that snapped Stan's head backwards, following up with a solid dragon kick to the gut that sent the big guy bowling into the nearest support pillar.

"Oh, slag it." Terry muttered when Stan stood, and he saw that the big bastard had a grenade in each hand. He pulled the pin and threw the first, then the second. Terry caught the first and threw it out the nearest window. The glass shattered when the projectile detonated outside, but thankfully there was nobody in that area, though a number of displays were damaged by falling glass.

Terry paid no attention to that - he was too busy activating both electromagnetic shields just as Stan's second grenade detonated. He was thrown completely off his feet and off-balance, but the shields held, and he used the boot thrusters to stabilize himself before he smacked into the wall. He actually managed to land on his feet, and activated the suit's cloaking systems.

When the smoke cleared, the grenade had annihilated a couple of nearby displays, and of Batman there was absolutely no sign. Stan laughed maniacally.

"See that? You stooges of the system see that? That's what'll happen to all of you! I'm gonna BLOW YOU ALL TO PIECES like I just did him!"

- "Yeah, not so much." Batman's voice said conversationally.

- "What?" Stan stammered, looking around. "Where are you?"

- "Where am I?" Batman replied mockingly. "I'm right behind you."

Stan turned around, and saw nothing. Terry, meanwhile, still cloaked, had gotten right up close to Stan, and as he did so, deployed the three spikes that protruded from his forearm, which extended into wickedly sharp, curved blades. He sliced Stan's vest open from top to bottom, dodging a wild punch, and wrenching it off him from behind. He threw the vest away from him and anyone else, just before the explosives built into it detonated.

- "Stop hiding, man!" Stan yelled in frustration.

- "Suit yourself." Terry replied, and the instant he appeared right behind Stan he threw a hard kick, sending him tumbling to the floor.

Stan stood and drew a big combat knife, a nasty-looking piece of work with an eight-inch serrated blade and a knuckle guard.

"That's new." Batman quipped. "Big, slow guy like you, bet you can't get close enough to use it though" That wasn't really true - Stan _was_ fast for his size. But the insult riled him up, which was the point. And when the big guy charged to get close enough to use the knife, Terry was ready, parrying the attack easily with his forearm blades, then unleashing a head-butt that disoriented Stan for a second. Terry used that second to grab ahold of Stan's wrist and twist it sideways.  
He yelled in pain, and the knife fell to the ground with a clatter.

The next instant, Stan threw a punch that connected with Terry's upper torso, and he staggered back. But he countered instantly, throwing a vicious right cross that connected with Stan's jaw, in the same spot he'd already hit previously, hard enough to hurt but with just enough force to prevent major injury. By the time Stan recovered, Terry whipped behind him, wrenched his arms back, and restrained him using a pair of flex-cuffs he pulled from the suit.

- "I'll take it from here, Batman." He heard behind him, and recognized Barbara Gordon's voice.

- "He's all yours, Commissioner Gordon." He replied seriously. Then he made his exit, glancing at a clock as he did so. 7:25.

_'Damn. Now I'm late because of that dreg.'_

"Done." He said as he opened up a com-link back to the old man. "Gordon's got Stan in custody; no casualties. Fair bit of property damage though, what with him flinging explosives around."

- "What about you?" Bruce asked.

"Just a bit rattled; Suit's in perfect shape." He said.

- "Well, come back for now. I want to run a couple of diagnostics tests." Bruce said.

- "It'll have to wait." Terry said. "I'm late for an appointment." Then he cut the link without waiting for the old man's reply.

* * *

Melanie glanced up at the big clock, and sighed exasperatedly. She had arrived just a couple of minutes after seven thirty, and had not been surprised to find that Terry was not waiting for her. Now, it was almost seven forty-five. She was about to turn around and go home, when she heard hurried footsteps, and saw him running towards her.

"Melanie!" He said as he drew near, and he stopped, trying to catch his breath.  
"Sorry I'm so late," he said, "I just..."

- "I know, you got hung up at work again." She said. She knew she sounded irritated, but couldn't help it.

He'd been late so often, and a couple of times had even stood her up entirely.  
The one thing that could be said for him is that he always called if he wasn't going to make it, and he always tried to make an effort to make it up to her. But he was so secretive about his job, and it was starting to get to her.  
What exactly did he do for Wayne that the old man needed him so often?

"I'm really sorry about this," he said, and he sounded it. "I promise I'll make it up to you."

She sighed, but it was so hard to stay mad at him.  
- "So, where are we going tonight?" She asked.

Tonight, Terry was thinking way outside the box. They went to the opera, something neither of them had ever done before, and which both of them immensely enjoyed. After the show, they went for a late dinner at a good restaurant Terry knew about called the Rose Café, which had the added appeal of being classy and quite affordable. But throughout dinner, Terry couldn't help but notice that Melanie seemed preoccupied.

"Oh, it's nothing, really." she said evasively when he asked what was on her mind.  
After a while, she spoke up again. "I was just thinking of a rather odd encounter I had last night."

- "Really?" Terry asked. "With who?"

- "With your boss and that massive dog of his." She said, watching carefully to gauge his reaction.

Terry did a double-take when he found out that she'd met Wayne, which the old man had not mentioned.  
- "So, what happened?" He asked, though he had a sneaking suspicion of how it might have gone.

- "Well, Ace at least seems to like me." She said, which surprised Terry even more.

- "Wow, that's kind of surprising...that dog _HATED_ me for the longest time when I started working for Wayne." Terry said, and Melanie smiled, imagining how much trouble a dog that large could cause Terry. "We get along better now, though. "

- "Is that so?" She said. "Wayne seemed as surprised as you are about Ace taking a liking to me. Is it really so strange?"

- "It's nothing to do with you," Terry explained, "You're an amazing girl. It's just... Ace is a rescue, and he's seen some pretty terrible things. It's made him...I don't know. He's just not a very trusting animal. But he's a good dog."

It occurred to him that the same thing was also true about Wayne, at least from what he'd been able to tell working for him over the past few years.

- "I thought so too." She said. "It's a pity I can't say the same for its owner."

- "Mr. Wayne? Yeah he...isn't the easiest person to get along with."

- "He's a mean-tempered old bastard, you mean." she replied, somewhat more sharply than she meant to. To her surprise, Terry laughed.

- "Yeah, I guess he is that." Terry said. "Is that what's on your mind? The things he said?"

- "He brought up...you know, my past." she said sadly. "He said that I'm defined by what I did. I just...it's been so hard, you know? I haven't even spoken to my own mother in two years, and yet..."

She was on the verge of tears, and Terry could see that whatever Wayne had said had cut deep.  
He took her in her arms, and felt her rest her head on his shoulder.

- "He doesn't know you like I do." Terry said soothingly, trying to comfort her. "And some people just aren't willing to forgive others for past mistakes - I know that from experience. But I'll always be right here. I love you, and I trust you - and it doesn't matter to me what the old man thinks."

She looked up to him and sniffled, but she seemed better.  
- "You mean that?" She asked, and he nodded. She looked relieved.

And then, Terry started to tell her his story.  
"Years ago, I used to run in a gang with a guy called Charlie Bigelow. Started off small, but gradually he got us into bigger and bigger stuff. Until finally we were all busted. I was still underage, so I did three months in juvie. He went to prison."

Melanie listened, without saying a word.  
"I'd thought of Charlie as a friend. But really, he wasn't - or at least, he didn't see me the same way. It took a long time for me to realize that. And when I did, I just turned my back on him, forgot about that part of my life. But even after I got out of juvie, and I did everything I could to make things right, there were still people like Dana's father who held it against me.  
But I knew, and my family knew. Just like now - you and I both know that you're done with that part of your life. And I'll always be right here for you."

For several moments, Melanie didn't - couldn't speak. She would never have guessed that Terry had ever had any kind of criminal history. He seemed so..._whole_. Not like her. But he had his family - his wonderful mother, his little brother.  
She didn't even have that, since her parents were the reason for her life of crime.  
Well, that wasn't true - she had Jack, brave Jack, who had followed after her in leaving the Gang behind.

But even more than that, she had him. They had each other. And to hear him not only tell her those things, but tell her that they would always have each other meant more to her than mere words could possibly convey.  
- "That means so much to me," she said gratefully, embracing him again, trying to put into her embrace what she couldn't put into words. "Thank you."

Hand in hand, they slowly walked together, back towards the opera.  
"I guess we really are two of a kind." She said, echoing something she had said to him years earlier, on the night they had first met. He nodded.  
- "We certainly are." He said. He'd taken a risk by telling her about his past, something that he had shared with very few people. But somehow he'd known she would understand. And it had allayed her own doubts about herself.

Terry had borrowed Ryan's car again, since his buddy had no plans for the night and it was way too cold to take the bike.  
He made a note that he'd need to get a car of his own, but that would have to wait. They finally reached the spot where he'd parked it, and he held open the passenger-side door. Once she was in, he walked around to the driver's side, climbed in, and they drove off.

He drove Melanie back to her flat, and walked her to the door.  
"Thanks for the evening," she said, and kissed him tenderly. "Even though you were late again."

- "I'll try to do better next time." He said, and she laughed.

- "As long as you're there." She said, and kissed him again. "Good night, Terry."  
Then she closed the door.

Terry stepped back to the car, and was almost at Ryan's dorm to drop it off when his phone rang.  
'_No rest for the weary,'_ he mused. But at least he had managed to get through his date without interruption.

He stepped out of the car, grabbing his bag - he'd return the keys to Ryan tomorrow, and Ryan had a spare anyway - as he picked up the phone. He listened in silence for a moment.  
"I'm on my way." He said, then hung up.


	9. 09: Revelations Part 1

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **Here comes Chapter 9 - this particular story is nearing its end, unfortunately. Fear not, however, for I have plans for another story soon to follow

* * *

**BATMAN BEYOND:  
Reunited - a TxM Story**  
**Part 9**

Well, that takes care of that." Terry commented with a satisfied expression, as he packed up his completed assignments. He was about to get up from his desk when his phone rang, and he felt a sinking dread. There was really usually only one person who called him in the evening. He was surprised when he saw the number wasn't Wayne's. But he recognized the number, and picked up the phone instantly.

"This is Terry."

- "Hey, Terry." Melanie said, and something about her tone of voice worried him.

- "Hi, Melanie." He said. "Is something the matter?"

- "Afraid so. It looks like I'm not going to be able to make it tonight." She replied, "Cal's sick, and they need me to cover his shift." Terry was disappointed to hear that their date was off for the night, but he understood. Nor did he much mind - he'd had to make the same call before, disappointing to both of them as it was.

- "That's all right," he assured her, "We'll just do it some other time."

- "I'll make it up to you." Melanie said, and Terry couldn't repress a chuckle. "What's so funny?" she asked.

- "That's normally my line." Terry said, still smiling, and though she did not laugh, when she next spoke he could tell from her tone she was as amused at the reversal as he was.

- "I guess it is, at that." She said, and he pictured her smiling. "I'll call you later. I love you."

- "I love you too, Melanie. Good night." He said, and she hung up the phone.

_'All right,'_ he thought. _'So now what?'_

He stood, making sure to lock up, and strode to his bike, taking with him the worn brown backpack he'd been using since High School, which contained the suit. He stowed it in the storage compartment of his bike, started her up, and roared off.

When he arrived, he was greeted at the bottom of the staircase by Ace, who barked loudly.  
"Nice to see you too, mutt." He said absently, petting the big dog's head. Tail wagging rhythmically behind him, the dog padded over to his customary spot next to the big chair in front of the computer, occupied as usual by Wayne.

The past couple of days, Terry had noticed that Wayne seemed preoccupied, but he had offered no explanation, nor even broached the subject at all.  
Terry, though, had a good idea what was on the old man's mind.

"You're early." Wayne said flatly.

- "Let's just say that my evening opened up and I had no other pressing engagements." Terry replied vaguely.

- "Right." Wayne replied cynically, as if he guessed what Terry was alluding to - which he did.

- "I know what you're thinking." Terry said. "She had to work, that's all."

Wayne did not reply, merely looked at Terry, his expression inscrutable. Shaking his head, Terry strode to a back corner of the cave, where he changed out of his street clothes and into the suit. Once he was done, but before he put on the cowl, he stepped back over to the computer. There were things to talk about before he left on patrol.

- "Since you brought up the subject," he said, "I heard you had a run-in with Melanie the other night. Care to comment?"

Bruce did not immediately answer. Terry's relationship with the allegedly reformed former thief had been a point of contention between them since it began two months earlier, and despite his own doubts, Bruce remained unconvinced.

- "Ace seems to like her." He commented laconically.

- "Now there's a surprise." Terry quipped. "Given how much that dog hated me when I started doing this."

Despite himself, Bruce smiled at the recollection of the mutual dislike between his dog and Terry for the first few months of his tenure as the new Batman, though Ace had gotten used to Terry and had saved his hide on a few occasions, most recently during the Joker incident. Terry, however, was not about to let it go at that.  
"What about you?" He asked.

Bruce still did not reply, as he pondered the brief, hostile encounter with the strong-willed young woman.

On the one hand – as he'd said himself – he'd always known Ace to be an excellent judge of character. But on the other hand, the girl was a born thief, raised by thieves. A member of the Royal Flush Gang. And his own experience told him that people like that generally did not suddenly turn over a new leaf. At least, not for long.

"You don't believe her." Terry said. "I'm guessing she told you herself the same thing I've been telling you, but you still don't trust her. No - you don't _want_ to trust her."

- "No, I don't." Bruce said with more certainty than he felt. "And what we do is far too important for you to risk jeopardizing it by revealing our identities to a convicted felon."

- "You don't have to remind me of the importance of what we do - I know it." Terry replied. "Every night I put my life on the line out there, I remember how important it is. But unlike you, I'm trying to balance my responsibilities as Batman with my responsibilities to my family, and a relationship."

- "A relationship with a thief." Bruce replied tersely. "And that seems like a good idea to you?"

- "You're not really being fair, you know." Terry said. "Is it so hard to believe that she could change? I did."

- "It's not the same thing." Bruce countered. "You weren't raised a criminal from birth."

- "That doesn't make a difference." Terry retorted, his voice rising as his temper started to get the better of him. "But now that you mention it, let me ask you this: What about _Talia_?"

- "What?" Bruce exclaimed. Of all of the things Terry could have said, this had to be the one the old man would have least expected, and one of the most painful.  
Talia had been...a special woman. In the years since, he had often regretted that she had disappeared following her father's apparent death. The truth of what happened to her, he later learned, was even more horrifying.

- "If your problem is with the fact that Melanie's family are all criminals," Terry continued, "Then where does she fit in?"

- "You don't know what you're talking about." Bruce snapped angrily.

- "Don't I?" Terry challenged. He knew full well that bringing her up at all was hitting way below the belt. But if there was one argument that might get the old man to back down, this had to be it. "She was a criminal her entire life, and you still trusted her, didn't you? Same goes for Selina Kyle. So don't you think it's hypocritical for you to claim that the fact Melanie's family are criminals means that she can't be trusted? Especially when she's already turned her back on all of them - something neither of them ever did."

- "You're out of line, McGinnis!" Bruce replied angrily. He looked angrier than Terry had seen him since the first time he'd found the cave, years earlier. But he stood his ground.

- "You know what your problem is? You don't trust anyone anymore!" Terry retaliated. "You've become so bitter that you just can't help but see the worst in everyone!"

He turned around without another word, putting the cowl on, and within a few minutes he had boarded the car and taken off, leaving his mentor alone in the darkness with his own thoughts.

If the boy had physically struck him, it would have hurt less than his words did at that moment. Wearily, Bruce sat down slowly in the chair he always occupied.

Ace, in his usual position next to Bruce, whined plaintively.  
"I know, boy." He said darkly. "I know."

* * *

Deckard's Kitchen. He had never set foot inside the place, though he knew exactly where it was and probably could have found it blindfolded.

Terry was stationed about twenty feet up the side of a building across the street from the restaurant, hidden in the shadows of the alley between it and the next building over. He remained in that spot for about ten minutes, watching. He saw her step outside, into the alley behind the restaurant - taking a short break, he guessed.

He would make his presence known but he knew how she'd react. So he simply watched for a little while longer, until she went back inside. Then he slipped away, and continued his patrol.

When he returned to the cave, he found the old man seated in his chair in front of the computer, Ace in his usual spot at his side. He doubted either of them had moved since his departure.

He parked the car, exited it, and said nothing.

"You're wrong, you know." Wayne said in a low voice.

- "About what?" Terry asked, a hard edge in his voice.  
Bruce looked at him as he stood near the car, still wearing the suit and cowl, and for a moment, said nothing.

Bruce had long ago noticed similarities between Terry and Dick, who had been the first Robin before striking out on his own as Nightwing. But as he looked at the much younger man, who removed the cowl, glaring intensely at him, he was struck by how much he saw in Terry of himself at that age. And it occurred to Bruce that he wanted to prevent Terry from making the same mistakes he did.

- "You're wrong," Bruce said again, looking Terry straight in the eye, "when you say I don't trust anyone. I trust you - otherwise we wouldn't be having this discussion."

The implication of his statement was not lost on Terry. If Bruce had not trusted him, he never would have allowed him to continue as Batman. And Terry would never have met Melanie. But the admission itself was what cooled the anger that had flared at Bruce's continued refusal to give Melanie a chance. Even so, he wasn't about to let it slide.  
- "Then prove it." Terry challenged.

- "Terry," Bruce replied, and there was a hard edge to his voice, but the anger that had been there a few hours earlier was gone. "I've been doing this a long time. I've made mistakes, and I don't want you to make the same mistakes."

- "The only mistake I made was to allow this job, these responsibilities, to destroy one relationship - one that meant a lot to me." Terry countered instantly. "And it is _not_ a mistake I will make again."

Bruce opened his mouth to reply, but for once words failed him. Terry's words cut far deeper than the young man suspected, reminding the elderly Wayne of his own mistakes, the relationships he had sacrificed for his mission. Selina, Barbara...his friendship with Dick, with Tim.

"I'm not asking you to trust her, I'm not even asking you to _like_ her." Terry continued. "I'm asking you to trust _me_ when I tell you that Melanie has left the Royal Flush Gang behind for good. And to at least give her the benefit of the doubt."

Terry turned away, moving into a different area of the cave to change out of the suit and into street clothes. When he returned, Bruce sighed wearily.

- "Terry," he started to say, "I want you to listen to me very carefully. You and I have a responsibility to this city. It is critically important that we safeguard the truth, including your identity and mine."

- "I know." Terry replied.

- "Also remember that anyone who knows who you are - who knows who Batman is - is a target for any one of our enemies. And if any of them should learn of it, they will not hesitate to use that against you - they will use her to get to you."

- "I understand that." Terry said, as Bruce's words brought to mind the incident, years earlier, with Miguel Diaz. On the other hand, Max had known for almost as long, and nothing had ever come of it - more or less. And Melanie would understand better than anyone the implications and inherent risks of a double life.

- "Is she really worth that to you?" Bruce asked, his eyes fixed on Terry.

For a moment, neither man moved. Then, Terry nodded.  
- "I trust Melanie completely. And she trusts me. But more than that, I love her." He said.

There was nothing else to say.

Bruce remained opposed to the idea that Terry should deliberately reveal to anyone the truth - especially to a convicted thief, whether reformed or not. But Terry, who was just as stubborn as Wayne himself, remained unwavering in his conviction, his trust absolute. He would just have to trust that the kid knew what he was doing.

- "Get out of here." Wayne said wearily.

- "I'm sorry if I said anything to upset you." Terry said sincerely. "Good night, sir."

- "Good night, Terry." Wayne said softly, as Terry left.

* * *

Several days passed following Terry's with Bruce, and the tension between them was less than it had been, but still remained in the wake of the argument. Fortunately, neither of them seemed particularly inclined to discuss the matter again, which Terry didn't mind, as he worried that another argument could only have negative repercussions.

Terry, having completed his patrol, silently approached the Gotham State campus, completely hidden by the Batsuit's advanced cloaking systems. Opening his dorm room window from the outside, Terry slipped into his darkened room, and closed the window. Then and only then did he disengage the suit's cloaking systems.

He had been on patrol, when he had a run-in with a group of thugs involved in a major arms deal. The arms dealer had booked it when Batman made his entrance, leaving him to engage the half-dozen thugs, whom he had dealt with easily – at least until their boss made his entrance: Charlie Bigelow, now better known as the metahuman gangster Big Time.

_'Man, I had forgotten how much of a punch that big bastard packed.' _He thought as he peeled off the cowl. Then he glanced at the wall clock and bit back a curse as he saw the time.

Even with the greater strength enhancement of the upgraded suit, Terry had been at a disadvantage against Big Time, who was not only enormously strong, but had the advantage of size, as well. Before a GCPD tactical strike force led by Detective Alcana had arrived, he had taken a few pretty hard hits. He had finally subdued Big Time, and then Alcana's men had taken him into custody. The slender detective had also mentioned that his men had snagged the arms dealer as well.

"Terry. Are you sure you're all right?" Wayne asked. "You should get back here so that we can take a look at your injuries." The old man sounded worried, which Terry understood – even with the suit's insulation, there was a possibility that the hit he'd taken might have cracked a rib or worse.

- "I'll be fine." Terry said through gritted teeth.  
He didn't think it was that bad, though Big Time had clocked him in the face pretty hard. Even more painful were his ribs, after a punch from Big Time's enormous fist had sent him slamming into a wall, hard.

- "If you say so." Wayne said skeptically, and cut the link.

Terry took off the suit and checked himself over in the mirror. His entire left side was a patchwork of bruises where he'd hit the wall, and he had another bruise on the right side where Big Time had struck him. The bruise under his left eye was starting to swell. He took some time to treat his injuries and bandage his torso, then dressed in street clothes – jeans, the ubiquitous black t-shirt, and a black-and-red hooded sweater. The temperature was mild, for December, but he still threw on a jacket over his sweater. He folded the suit and stowed it in his backpack, which he slung over his shoulder. Then he left, heading down to his bike. Stowing the pack in the usual storage compartment on the front of the bike, he got on, started the engine, and roared off.

* * *

Melanie stood below the tall steel-and-concrete pillar of the clock tower, waiting, an anxious expression on her face.  
It had been several days since she had been forced to cancel her date with Terry, and this was the first opportunity they'd had to get together – to which she was looking forward quite eagerly.

She glanced up at the clock and shook her head. She had been delayed in leaving work, so although they had arranged to meet here at 7:30, it was just past 7:40 when she arrived. Now, it was almost 7:50, and still there had been no word from Terry. She wondered if perhaps he had already come and gone, but dismissed the idea instantly. If he had been here, he would have called her. If he wasn't going to be there, he would have called her too. He always called. She looked up, but the stars were obscured by dark clouds, and the air was humid, as if it was going to rain.

Then, she heard him call out her name.

"Melanie!" Terry yelled as he ran towards the clock tower and he saw her.

She turned towards him, looking worried. But when she saw him he saw the worry disappear from her face as she smiled, and she began to run towards him. She threw herself into his arms, wrapping her arms around him, and recoiled in surprise when he cried out in sudden pain.

- "Terry, what…Oh, my God." She said, as she looked up into his eyes and she saw the swollen, dark bruise under his eye. "What happened?" She asked tenderly, looking up at him.

- "It's nothing," Terry said uneasily, "I just…it's just some dreg who picked a fight, got a few good hits in before I beat him."

- "Are you sure you're all right?" She asked, worried. He smiled reassuringly, and nodded, and she felt him slowly, tenderly caressing her cheek.

- "I'm fine. Promise." He said, and leaned in towards her and kissed her. She slowly wrapped her arms around the small of his back, pulling him closer.

"Have you been waiting long?" he asked when they parted, and she shook her head.

- "Just a few minutes." She said, her hands still holding him. "So this time, you get a pass even though you were late, Mister." She added playfully, smiling.

- "Well, thank you." He said. "Shall we go, then?"

- "Let's." She said, releasing him reluctantly. He took his hand in hers, and they walked together back to his bike.

He handed her a helmet, then put his on. As usual, she got on behind him, carefully wrapping her arms around him. Then he started the bike, and they rode in silence until they reached the Majestic, a vid theater downtown that had been another of Terry's favorite hangs in High School – along with Max, Dana, Howard, and a few others.

The cool thing about the Majestic was that it showed older, classic films as well as newer releases. He remembered one occasion he, Dana, Max, and Howard had been to see _Casablanca_. On another occasion, he'd gone with Cory and a couple of his friends to see a sci-fi movie that Cory swore had to have provided elements of inspiration for his favorite vid game,_ Sentries of the Last Cosmos_. The movie was the first in a series of nine, but Terry had begged off after the first one.

Tonight, he and Melanie were planning to see _Themyscira_, another older film. It turned out to be an excellent movie, and both of them really enjoyed it. After the movie was over, Terry took Melanie to dinner at Bizet's, a restaurant that he'd also been to several times over the years. It was no match for the Iceberg Lounge or even the Rose Café, but the price was right and the food was great. Throughout dinner, though they talked animatedly, Melanie couldn't help but think that Terry looked like he had something on his mind that preoccupied him, and she wondered what it was.

Finally, the two of them left the restaurant, walking, arm in arm, and she continued to wonder what Terry was thinking about. They arrived at his bike, which he had left parked in front of the theater, since the restaurant wasn't too far from it.  
"Terry?" she finally asked. "Is something wrong?"

- "Why do you ask?" Terry inquired.

- "It's just…you look like something's bothering you." She said. "It's not me, is it?"

- "No, it certainly isn't." He said, forcing a smile. The time had come, he thought, to come clean. Since he'd made his decision, he'd been waiting for an opportune moment to tell her the truth. He wasn't sure that walking home after a wonderful evening was the best time, but there was no point in postponing it anymore.

- "It's just…" He started to say, and sighed. "There's something I've been meaning to tell you for a while now. About my job."

- "You mean working for Mr. Wayne?" She asked. "I thought you were his assistant; you ran errands, things like that."

- "That's…part of it." He said. "It's kind of complicated."

Dimly, she recalled the first time they had ever spoken; he had said something very similar.  
- "You've said something like that before," she said. "Can you explain why?"

- "I suppose I should have told you about this from the beginning, but I guess I was afraid to." He confessed.

- "Why?" She asked, "Why would you be afraid to tell me anything? Don't you trust me?"

- "Of course I trust you." He said. "But I guess…I was afraid you would hate me, if you knew."

- "If I knew what?" She pressed. "Terry, you're not…he's not making you do something illegal, is he?"

- "No, it's nothing like that. It's totally the opposite, in fact." Terry said. "Melanie, the truth is that I…this is going to sound crazy."

- "What?" Melanie asked, as she was starting to get genuinely worried. "Terry, what are you trying to say?"

- "What I'm trying to say is that...I'm not sure how else to put this, so I'm just going to say it: the truth, Melanie, is that I'm Batman."

Melanie wasn't sure exactly what she had been expecting Terry to say, but that had to be the one thing she had not expected. Terry, Batman? The whole thing was totally ridiculous.  
- "If this is supposed to be a joke, it's not funny, Terry." She said incredulously.

- "It's no joke." Terry quietly, "I'm totally serious."

- "You…you can't be." she said, refusing to believe that Terry, whom she loved more than almost anything, could possibly be Batman. "You just _can't_ be."

Terry shook his head. Looking straight at her, he unlocked the storage compartment on the front of his bike, below the handlebars. His open bag was in the compartment, its contents plainly visible. When she saw what the bag contained, Melanie recoiled.  
"You...you really are...you're Batman?" She asked, her expression a mix of shock, confusion, and anger. Terry nodded.  
"And from the beginning - even two years ago, when we first met. Even then, that was you?" She asked, her voice rising, and again he nodded without saying another word.

- "Melanie...Believe me, I never wanted to hurt you." He started to say. "But..."

Tears rimming her eyes, a furious expression distorting her beautiful face, she slapped him, and he was unable to suppress a cry of pain, owing to the fact that he had a sizable bruise on his face.  
- "_LIAR_!" she yelled. "How could you..."

- "I _never_ lied to you." Terry protested. "_Never. _Whether now or then, even as Batman, I always..."

- "You never lied to me? Well, what do you call _this_?" She replied, sounding hurt and angry. "Think about what you just told me, Terry! All this time, you were..."

More than anything, what bothered Terry, who had never wanted to hurt her, was that Melanie sounded so distraught over the revelation of his dual identities.  
- "Melanie..." He started to say, but she held up her hand, and he stopped.

- "Don't." she said sharply. "Just...just don't. I…Look, I need some time to think about this." She turned her back on him, and started to walk away.

- "Melanie, please. Listen to me!" He begged, but she ignored him, accelerating her pace.  
"_MELANIE_!" He called after her, but she neither stopped nor turned her head, and soon she disappeared, leaving him standing in the parking lot alone.

Despondently, he closed the storage compartment, and pulled on his helmet. He straddled the bike, but as its engine roared to life, his mind was preoccupied by the events of the evening, and his fear that the trust that had existed between them was irreparably shattered.

_'Damned if I do, damned if I don't.' _He thought bitterly, as he pulled the bike out of its parking spot and began to head home, fighting back tears.

As if on cue, a heavy rain began to fall.


	10. 10: Revelations Part 2

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **Here comes Chapter 10, which picks up approximately one week following the end of the previous chapter.  
This is actually the longest chapter so far, and it is also, I am somewhat sad to say, the final one.

However, I have another story planned that I should hopefully be able to get to soon, so stay tuned! In the meantime, enjoy!

* * *

**BATMAN BEYOND:  
Reunited - a TxM Story**  
**Part 10**

Melanie Walker was just getting ready to step into the shower when her phone rang.  
Sighing, she wrapped herself in a towel and stepped out of the cramped bathroom into the main living area of her tiny flat, and glanced at the display. With the press of a button, she silenced the phone ring, shaking her head. She returned to the bathroom, let the towel fall, and stepped into the shower.

One week had passed since she had spoken to Terry. She had thought about him a lot since. He had called numerous times, but she had not picked up or called him back. The truth was, she wasn't sure what to say to him.

She stood under the spray of the shower, the cold water flowing over her skin, and she remembered, as she had so many times in the past two years, the look on Terry's face when she had seen him, standing off to the side in a narrow alleyway, as she was led from the hotel in handcuffs and herded, along with her parents and her brother, into a waiting GCPD van.

Later, she had sought him out again, once. But things hadn't been the same. And then...

Then, two months earlier, he had come back into her life. But the whole time, he had kept this from her. He knew everything about her life, but he had not told her everything about himself.

_'And no wonder'_, she thought bitterly. Now, she knew that that night not long ago, when Batman had "passed by", and she thought she had heard concern in his voice, she had been right.

She remembered that when she had sought out Terry after her parents' alleged abduction, Batman had insisted that she not steal again. Now, she knew why. And in her desperation to save her family, she had betrayed him, lied to him, and abandoned him to an unknown number of Jokerz while she stole for parents that deserved nothing from her but contempt.

That was what really ate away at her, she realized. She wasn't so much angry at Terry for not telling her the truth - although that was part of it. More than that, she was angry at herself.

Batman, she had thought selfishly, had ruined her life, not only tearing her family apart but, she thought, taking away from her the only chance she had at real happiness. And the revelation that Terry, the man she loved, _was_ Batman had left her feeling empty.

But then, she thought, he had not meant to hurt her. He had never meant to hurt her. On the other hand she had hurt him, repeatedly. He deserved better than that.

_'He deserves,' _she thought sadly,_ 'better than me.'_

She stood under the shower a few minutes more, the water flowing over her body and her face washing away the tears that welled up in her eyes. Finally, she turned the water off, toweled herself dry, and got dressed.

She had to go, or she'd be late.

* * *

The phone rang until it dumped to voicemail, and Terry hung up, ending the call without leaving a message. Despondently, he slipped the phone into his pocket. How many times had he called her in the past week? He wasn't sure, but she had never once picked up, nor called back. He hadn't seen her since either, except brief glimpses on campus. Before, they had lunch together almost every day, but now she seemed to be avoiding him.

_'Can you blame her, though?'_ He asked himself, thinking about how their last date had ended.  
He didn't think he could bear to lose her, especially not so soon after Dana.

"I _have_ to talk to her." He said aloud, though he was alone.

Wayne had not broached the subject since their last discussion. Nor was Terry particularly anxious to discuss it with the old man, who was suspicious to the point of paranoia and probably still remained reluctant to trust Melanie at all.

He glanced at the pile of assignments on his desk, waiting to be completed, but he shrugged. It would have to wait, he thought as he shouldered his backpack. He had more important things to do. He zipped up his dark brown leather jacket, stowed his pack in the bike, and put on his helmet.

The bike roared to life instantly, and he pulled out of the parking lot. Terry gunned the powerful motorcycle across town, threading through traffic as he made his way uptown from the University to his mother's place. He parked the bike, stowed his helmet, and grabbed his pack. Then he locked the bike and headed up to the apartment.

- "Terry," she said when she opened the door and saw him. "I wasn't expecting to see you."

- "Hi, Mom." Terry said, and hugged his mother. "How are you?"

- "Oh, you know. Not too bad." She said. "What about you?

Terry shrugged and entered the apartment, closing the door behind him. For once, Matt wasn't plopped down in front of the TV in the living room, and Terry guessed he was either playing in his room or at the Duquesnes's again.

Mary McGinnis knew, instinctively, that something was wrong. Terry was quiet, glum; she hadn't seen him like this in a few months, not since his unfortunate break-up with Dana Tan, a sweet girl whom he'd known since they were both fourteen years old. She wondered if it had anything to do with Melanie.

Melanie was, Mary thought, a very nice girl, in her own way. A bit quiet, and oddly evasive wherever her family was concerned. But Mary knew a troubled child when she saw one, and she had not pried out of respect for the young woman's privacy. Besides, she had seen the way she and Terry looked at each other.

- "What about you, Terry?" she asked. "You look worried about something. Is something wrong with Melanie?"

Terry sighed as he sat down on the living room couch, setting his backpack down on the ground next to him. She idly wondered why he had brought it. He hesitated for a moment before answering.  
- "I don't know, Mom." He said. "We…had an argument - over my job with Mr. Wayne." He did not say anything more specific – at least, not yet.

- "Oh, Terry, I'm so sorry to hear that." She said. "She seemed like such a nice girl, and I thought you looked so happy together."

- "I thought we were too." He said. "But now…"

- "Have you talked to her since you argued?" She asked.

- "I tried, Mom." Terry said. "I've been calling her every day, but she doesn't pick up. I've asked her to call me back, but she hasn't. I'm not sure she even wants to talk to me."

Mary shook her head, but she understood what Terry was going through.  
- "You really love her, don't you?" she said. The question was intended to be rhetorical, but Terry nodded.

"Terry," she said, "Every couple argues – sometimes, it gets bad. Your father and I were no different."  
Terry knew that. He had been very young, but he remembered the arguments. It had torn them apart, and his parents had divorced. Terry had gone with his father, Matt with his mother. And while there had been some measure of reconciliation afterwards, they had stayed apart until Warren McGinnis's murder. Ironically, his death had brought the family together again as nothing else had before.  
Dad would've liked that, he thought – except for the part where he was dead.

Terry had not been kind to his father – far from it. The last conversation they had before his death, he had yelled at him.  
It was his guilt at his behaviour that had driven him to take on the mantle of the Batman, however against his predecessor's will it was.

"But perhaps the mistake Warren and I made was that we didn't talk enough about our problems, at least not until one of us blew up." She said. "So my advice to you, Terry, is to talk to her - and I don't mean on the phone. Go see her, talk to her. Try to understand how she feels, and work through it with her. And if it is something that you did or said that troubled her, apologize."

She was right, of course. Terry saw that, and smiled faintly.  
"Thanks, Mom." He said, and he hugged her.

"Is Matt here?" Terry asked, and Mary shook her head, confirming his earlier guess when she advised him that he was at the Duquesnes's, sleeping over there.  
Good.

After a while, Terry started to speak again. This was why he had come, after all.  
"Listen, Mom. The real reason that Melanie and I argued...well, there's something about my "job" that I've been keeping a secret. And I decided not to do that anymore."

A puzzled expression on her face, Mary McGinnis wondered what her son was leading up to. Terry, meanwhile, picked up his bag and set it down on the coffee table.  
"Do you remember a couple of years ago, when Ian Peak said on that show of his that he was going to reveal to everyone the identity of Batman?"

- "Yes, I remember." Mary McGinnis replied, somewhat taken aback by the apparent change of subject. "But they never did air that episode – I think the show was cancelled, wasn't it?"

- "It was." Terry said.

- "I have to admit, I was curious." She said, "I was rather disappointed that it never aired."

- "I wasn't. I was relieved, to tell you the truth." Terry said.

- "Why would you be? Aren't you at all curious?"

- "No." Terry said. "Because I already know who Batman is."

That statement took Mary McGinnis by surprise, as did the flat, matter-of-fact way in which Terry said it. For a brief moment, she wondered why or how Terry would know something like that, but even as she asked the question, a possibility occurred to her; but it was so ludicrous that she almost refused to consider it.  
- "How could you possibly know something like that?"

Terry did not answer right away. He opened the top flap of his backpack, and tipped it forward so she could see its contents. She gasped in horrified surprise when she saw the sleek, black garment, with its distinctive full-face mask.  
- "Because it's me," he said. "I'm Batman."

And Terry told his story from its beginning, starting with the truth about the murder of Warren McGinnis, his subsequent attempts to first go to the police, and then when it became clear that Derek Powers would stop at nothing to prevent the police from learning the truth and he realized that he might not even be able to get to anyone he could trust, how he had decided to take matters into his own hands.  
At first, Terry's story was almost too incredible to believe, but the more he spoke, the more certain things that she had noticed over the past few years started to make sense – the strange coincidence of Batman reappearing after thirty years, mere days after her ex-husband's murder; Terry's suddenly frequent lateness, his absences.

Then she remembered something else.  
- "When Ian Peak talked about revealing the identity of Batman, he said there was someone else. Was that Mr. Wayne?"

Terry nodded.  
- "Wayne was the original Batman," he explained, and related the complete story of how Terry had, as Bruce himself had said before, saved his life - albeit Wayne himself had helped Terry out of a jam at the same time - and his subsequent discovery of Wayne's secret.  
"He helps me when I go out there." He said. "He's also been helping me train."

Mary McGinnis leaned back into the couch, her head spinning. Quite apart from the fact that Warren had been killed not by Jokerz, but by his own employer, to learn that her son was Batman...and that Bruce Wayne, one of the most respected businessmen in Gotham's history, not only knew about it, but had been the previous Batman himself, and encouraged her reckless firstborn's decision. It was almost more than she could take. But more than that, she was horrified at suddenly learning that Terry wasn't just a "gopher" as Wayne had euphemistically put it, but was out there every night, running the risk of being hurt - or worse, killed.

- "Terry, you have to stop this." She said, and there was a panicked edge to her voice. "It's too dangerous."

Terry shook his head. He understood his mother's reaction – it's not every day a mom learns her eldest is risking his life on a nightly basis.  
- "Even if I could, I wouldn't." he said firmly. "I know it's dangerous; but I can handle it – I can take care of myself."

- "But why should you even have to?" She asked. "That's a job for the police, not…why would you even let Mr. Wayne put you in so much danger?"

- "I don't do it because Wayne tells me to – he didn't even _want_ me to do it, at first." He said. "It was my decision to do it, and to keep doing it – as long as Mr. Wayne let me."

- "But why?" She pleaded. "Why would you…? Was it just because of what happened to your father?"

- "At first, it was." He said. "That was why I did it in the first place – I couldn't go to the cops, Powers had too much influence there, he would have stopped it. I wanted revenge for Dad, so I did what I had to do. But afterwards…there were too many things I wanted to protect – Dana, you, Matt. So I kept doing it. Because…because I feel like it's the first time I'm doing something worthwhile."

Terry looked out the window, a faraway look in his eyes. "Becoming Batman…it saved my life." He said. "Before, I was headed down a bad road. This..." He nodded towards the black suit in the bag. "It pulled me out, helped me get my life back on track – mostly. I had a chance to really make a difference, in a good way. And I guess it's also a chance to make up for the mistakes I've made."

Her expression softened, but he could still see the fear in her eyes. He understood that.  
- "And there's nothing I can say that would convince you to stop, is there?"

He shook his head.  
- "No, I don't think so." He said. "This is…it's a part of who I am, now. I have this opportunity, this power to make a difference, to do some good. And I guess it's my responsibility to use that power. Besides, you don't need to worry – I can take care of myself."

- "Terry, I'm your mother. I worry about you constantly. Especially now – you've just told me that you're _Batman_, for heaven's sake." She said, and he could tell that nothing he could say would stop her from worrying.

- "I know." He said. "But I'll be fine."

She was still worried. She'd seen on the news some of the criminals Batman went up against, and the idea that it was her Terry out there terrified her. But at the same time, she could not help but feel proud of him.

- "Did Dana know?" Mary asked, and Terry's expression darkened.

- "No." he said. "I never told her. Maybe, if I had, things would have been different. But it's a mistake I promised myself I wouldn't make again."

"Mr. Wayne...did not agree. But I felt you deserved to know, and so did she." Terry said. "So I told Melanie a week ago - that's what we argued about."

- "Well then, you _definitely_ need to talk things over with her." She said, and he nodded. "You also need to do something else, Terry."

- "Yes? What is it?"

- "Please promise me you'll be careful. I don't want anything to happen to you."

Terry smiled.  
- "Of course – I promise I'll be careful." He said. "I love you, Mom."  
And he hugged his mother. They stayed like that for a while, before he stepped back.

"But one thing, Mom: I told you, because you deserve to know the truth. Honestly, I should have told you ages ago, but I never did." He added. "But you can't tell _anyone. Especially_ not Matt – the twip would never stop pestering me about it. And he probably couldn't keep his mouth shut, either."

Mary McGinnis chuckled despite herself, shaking her head. But she agreed.  
- "Will you be staying here tonight?" she asked, and Terry shook his head.

- "I'm going to head back to the dorm; I have some work to do for class that I didn't quite finish." He said.  
He bade her good night, then picked up and closed his bag and left the apartment.

He soon reached his motorcycle, and he stowed the bag in its usual storage compartment. He put on his helmet, started up the bike, and carefully drove out of the parking lot.

He didn't accelerate until he reached the highway that led south back to Gotham State, and when he did he quickly shifted up into the higher gears, keeping the bike moving at exactly the speed limit – though it was capable of going far faster. As he rode, he activated the earpiece built into his helmet and voice-dialed Melanie's number. He listened to the ring, and when the call dumped to voice mail, left a message asking for her to call.  
Then he hung up.

He finally reached his dorm, parked the bike, and walked in. Sighing wearily, he stripped off his shirt and checked over the bruising on his torso, which was nearly gone. He checked his watch, and decided to allocate one hour to his classwork. At the end of that hour, he had completed all but two of his assignments, and he still had at least another day to get them done. So he suited up, slipped very cautiously out of the dorm through the window – which he closed – and stealthily made his way across the rooftops until he left the university behind, using the suit's cloaking systems when needed. Once he was well clear of the campus, he activated the remote on the belt that would bring the car to his location on auto-pilot.

It was time to get to work.

* * *

Terry thought a great deal about what his mother had told him when he had visited her. Which was why, a couple of nights later, at around 8:00 PM, he found himself standing at the entrance to Deckard's Kitchen.

_'Okay,' _he thought, _'time to see if we can't find a way to work this out.'_

He entered the restaurant, which was mostly empty – good. He found a seat near one of the windows, and sat down. And he waited.

In the back of the restaurant, Melanie checked the big digital clock that hung in the back of the kitchen, and saw that her shift was about to end.

"D'you need me to stick around, Cal?" she asked her manager, who shook his head. "All right, I'll see you tomorrow."

She washed her hands, and was about to head into the bathroom to change, when she saw someone enter, and she almost did a double-take. But sure enough it was him, wearing the same dark brown leather jacket he always did, carelessly handsome, and she saw him cast a brief glance around as he sat down near the window.  
She stepped out into the restaurant, walked towards him, and saw him turn towards her when she called his name.

For the first time in a week, Terry heard Melanie's voice, and he thought for a moment how much he had longed to hear that voice again.

"Terry?" She sounded surprised.

- "Hey." He said, turning to look up at her. She stood next to the table, her arms crossed. She wore a white button-down blouse, with a little black bow-tie, and a conservative, knee-length black skirt – her work uniform, obviously. She looked surprised too, but he couldn't tell whether she was happy to see him or not.  
- "What are you doing here?" She asked.

- "Oh, you know…" he started to say. "I was hoping maybe I could buy you a cup of coffee. And if you're still up for it, I was hoping we could talk." And he smiled that confident smile, but she saw in his eyes how worried he really was, and she realized he'd worried for her. But finally, she smiled.

- "Throw in a slice of pie, and we'll see." She said.

- "Deal. You pick which one." He answered without hesitation. "I've never eaten here before, so I'll trust your judgment."  
She caught the double meaning of his statement, but did not comment. She merely turned around and walked back towards the kitchen. She soon returned with two cups of coffee and slices of apple pie, and slid into the booth across from him.

"So," he started to ask, "how've you been?"

- "Not bad." She lied. "Keeping busy - you know, work, classes. Trying to save up as much as I can. What about you?"

- "The same." Terry said. "Thinking about you. I really missed you, this past week."

- "And your family?" she asked, with just a hint of bitterness.

- "They're both fine. I talked to Mom yesterday, and she asked about you." He said.

- "Is that so?..." Melanie said softly.

- "Listen, Melanie. About the other night - what I told you. I didn't mean to upset you, and if I did, I'm sorry. It's just..." Terry said. "When I was starting out, someone who saw who I was...ended up in danger because of it - nearly got killed. And I never wanted to put anyone in that kind of danger again. But I realized that you deserved to know the truth. Because I trust you, and I don't want there to be any secrets between us. Not anymore."

- "You _trust me_?" She said bitterly. "I don't deserve that. And after everything that's happened, everything that I did, you deserve better."

- "What _you_ did?" Terry asked, somewhat confused. "Melanie, you've done _nothing_ wrong."

- "Yes, I have." She replied. Terry did not say anything, he simply looked at her, his expression neutral.

"The other night," she started to say, "After you told me...about your job...I was angry, confused. I guess on some level, I still blamed Batman for what happened to my family - even though they never really loved me the way I thought they did."

She shook her head as she thought about it. "Now that I say it, it sounds so stupid. But a part of me wanted to hate him for it, even though I've left them now. And that's why I reacted the way I did. Well, partly. Even though the truth is, without him I never would have realized that they never saw me as family the way I thought. I never would have been able to break free."

- "But you did." He said gently, looking straight at her, his eyes holding hers. She looked so miserable, he felt it almost like a physical ache in his chest. But he waited for her to speak.

- "Eventually." she said. "But at first, I chose them over you, the first time, and then again two years ago."

- "I know all of that." He replied, grinning. "I was there, remember?"

She smiled sadly, and then almost had to repress a laugh. How did he do it? How is it that he could make her smile so easily, even when she felt so lousy?

- "Terry, you could have been killed because of me!" She said, the smile fading from her face as quickly as it had come. "If anything, I should be the one apologizing."

For perhaps a minute, neither of them moved nor spoke. Finally he stood, walked around the booth, and sat next to her, taking her hand in his.  
"Melanie," he said softly, "I understand how you feel. But the things you did before - as Ten - they don't matter to me. As far as I'm concerned, the past is in the past. Forgiven, and forgotten."

- "You...really? But..." She stammered, but he guessed her question.

- "Because I know that you've left that life behind. Because I trust you." He said, in a voice so low it was almost a whisper. "And because I love you, completely and without question."

- "Terry, I'm so sorry." She said, and he laid a single finger on her lips, hushing her. And then his finger slid away, and he leaned in towards her, and she felt his lips pressing against hers, his strong arms wrapped around her, and she wanted nothing better than to simply melt into his arms. Then, the insistent ring of a cellphone sounded, and reluctantly, they slowly pulled apart. The ringing was coming from his jacket pocket, and he swore under his breath.

- "Sorry, I think I have to take this." Terry said apologetically, silently cursing Wayne's typically inopportune timing, and picked up the phone.  
"McGinnis." He said shortly, and then listened. "Right. I'll be there as soon as I can."  
He killed the call and pocketed the phone before turning to Melanie, who simply smiled, shaking her head.

- "Go." She said in an undertone, with a slight smile. "But don't forget to pay your tab before you run off to save the world."

- "Sorry." He said, and taking a moment to pay for their order, leaned over the table and kissed her again.

- "Be careful." She said. "And I'll see you afterwards."

She watched him leave, and then picked up the plates and cups, taking them back into the kitchen, where they would be washed. But as she thought of the unexpected turn her evening had taken, she couldn't help but smile.

Then she slipped into the restroom to change out of her uniform, and left the restaurant. It was cold, so she wore a thick dark coat, and she walked swiftly. But as she did, her mind was preoccupied with thoughts of him - his face, his voice, his touch. The things he made her feel, which no one ever had before.

She remembered well the first night they had met, how she had felt so inexplicably drawn to him. Two of a kind, that was them. That was what she had said. She little knew, at the time, just how true that statement was. Now she did know, and she was okay with that. Because it didn't change how she felt about him.

She also remembered how dismissive her mother had been, when she had mentioned having met a boy. And what her mother had told her about her King and what he would give to her. She had been wrong about him. But she had also been right, in a way. That was why, two years ago, she had gone to him, hoping to recapture what they'd had, what she had sacrificed. That was why she had written to him, putting pen to paper to tell him all of the things she had been unable to say.

He had never read her letter, but that didn't matter anymore. Because now, even in spite of the things she had done to him, he had accepted, forgiven her. He loved her as she loved him, and that was what had allowed her, finally, to forgive herself. And now that they had each other, she would never again do anything to jeopardize that relationship.

She thought, with a small smile, of what he had revealed to her, and that in itself showed how much he trusted her. How much she meant to him. And tonight he had come to her again, just as he did before, and he had reminded her why she had always felt so drawn to him, from the moment they met.

She thought of the oft-used epiteth the news media seemed to love to refer to his other life - they called Batman the Dark Knight. In retrospect, she found that amusingly appropriate. Because to them, he was a Knight, the watchful protector that silently guarded Gotham from its enemies.

But to her, he was so much more. He was the King her mother had told her she would find, the one who would give her the life she had always desired. He did not, could not, of course, provide the kind of material wealth to which she had been accustomed as a child, and to which her mother had been accustomed all her life. But what he did give her was infinitely more precious.

Terry made her happy in a way nothing else did. When she was with him, she felt truly free from the weight of her family's legacy, like she could be who she really was. And no amount of riches ever could come close to matching that.  
She had always known that, from the moment they met, though it had taken her far too long to realize it.

She knew it the day they met again at the Juice Bar after two years. She knew it the night she gave herself to him in his bedroom, in the apartment where his family lived. He was her King. He was a part of her life, and she a part of his.

And from now on, she vowed to herself as she neared her destination at last, they would always be together. No matter what.

* * *

It was slightly past midnight by the time Terry was able to find his way back to the Kitchen, still suited up.  
The restaurant was dark, and he saw immediately that it was closed. There was no sign of anyone around, and he guessed that Melanie had gone home. He hesitated. Her flat was not far from here - he could have gone to see her.  
_'She's probably asleep, at this hour.' _He thought. _'Better just go back to the dorms, and I'll talk to her tomorrow. Well, later today.'_

So he slipped away, silent as a ghost, and as he had so often before, snuck into the campus, moving swiftly from rooftop to rooftop until he reached the roof of his dorm. He engaged the suit's cloaking systems and slipped down to his window, opened it from the outside, then slipped in. He closed the window, and only then did he disengage the suit's cloaking systems. He pulled off the cowl.

"Welcome back." A voice said quietly behind him. He jumped, whirling around, and saw in the darkness a slender silhouette standing in the shadows near the door to his room.  
The light came on, and revealed Melanie Walker, wearing a dark-red blouse and tight-fitting black pants. A dark gray coat was draped on the chair in front of his desk.

- "Melanie." He said, and smiled. "Don't do that."

- "Sorry," she said, smiling in return as she slowly crossed the room. She stopped halfway across, looking appraisingly at him. It took a while getting used to the sight of Terry wearing the Batsuit, even without the mask. But she didn't mind that anymore. He crossed the rest of the distance, and without another word he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her to him as he kissed her.

- "We're not going to be interrupted again, are we?" She whispered. He pulled away, fumbled for his cellphone, and turned it off before tossing it onto his desk. Then he hastily removed the suit, while Melanie slowly unbuttoned her blouse and took it off. Then she unfastened her pants, slowly sliding them down her long, slender legs, then kicking them off. She turned the lights off, but the moonlight through the window bathed the room in a faint, silvery glow.

She lay down on his bed and beckoned to him, and he obliged, gently removing first her bra, then her panties. She moaned with longing as he tenderly caressed every inch of her, his touch electrifying.

At last their lips met, their kisses urgent and hungry as he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her to him. She clung to him, her heart pounding in her chest, her passion matching his as each explored the other. Their bodies entwined as they made love, their movements in perfect harmony, gradually building in speed and urgency until at last she gasped his name as her release overwhelmed her, his own following an instant later.

Afterwards they lay in bed, their arms still wrapped around one another, their bodies slick with sweat.  
"I love you." He whispered.

"Say it again, please." She begged, and he obliged. She let out a long, contented sigh.  
"I love you too, Terry." She whispered in reply.

After a while, she spoke again. "Terry, promise me something." She said as she looked at him.

- "What?" He asked.

- "Promise me you'll never let me go." She pleaded.

He pulled her closer, and felt her head rest on his shoulder. "I promise." He whispered. "No matter what happens, I'll never let go."

Soon, she fell asleep in his arms, and eventually he drifted off as well.

**THE END**


End file.
